Slytherin's Heiresses
by Lyndotia
Summary: The tale of Hogwarts during and directly after Harry's years, told from a different point of view: that of Lord Voldemort's daughters, spitfire Gryffindor Lyn and little sister Reneey the Slytherin. Features little known and invented characters.
1. Light and Shadow

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Reneey and I have been playing with these characters on MSN for ages, and one night this idea struck me. I don't know how good this will turn out, but I'll give it my best shot. (And for any readers of my other fanfics -- don't worry, I'm not forgetting them!) Oh, yes, and FYI -- Lyndotia is pronounced LIN-DOE-SHUH and Reneey is REE-NEE.

**Chapter One -- Light and Shadow**

Lyndotia Elumo and Reneey Umbra were not your average eleven- and nine-year-olds. They were young witches, but even by wizarding standards, they were different. They both lived with Tasha Umbra, who was Reneey's mother. Lyndotia was Reneey's half sister, but not Tasha's daughter, even though she had been brought up as if she were. That wasn't really what made them so different, though.

The thing that set the two girls apart from the rest of the wizarding community was the identity of their father. Lyndotia Elumo and Reneey Umbra were the daughters of Lord Voldemort, the greatest Dark wizard of the age, and probably the Darkest in history. Tasha did her best to hide this fact from the rest of the wizarding world -- even going to far as to live in a Muggle subdivision -- but she knew that the truth would lead out eventually, and that the two would likely be something like outcasts.

And this was the day of truth. Lyndotia had received her letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry -- Tasha had secretly wondered whether she would or not, as she wasn't sure if Dumbledore would let the Dark Lord's daughters attend -- and today the three of them were going to Diagon Alley. The girls knew quite well how to use Floo Powder by now, as they went several times a year to see Tasha's parents in Uzbekistan, so that part, at least, went off without a hitch.

"Where do we go first, Mum?" Lyndotia asked, looking around at the many shops of Diagon Alley.

"Gringotts, of course," Mrs. Umbra answered with a chuckle. "You think you can buy your school things without any money?"

"Of course she can," Reneey said with a grin. "All she has to do is go into the shops and tell everyone who her father is. Threaten to curse them or something." Mrs. Umbra glared at her and Reneey said defensively, "_What_!? It could work..."

"Or we could all get chucked into Azkaban," said Lyndotia. "You know, one or the other." Reneey giggled and poked her mother in the ribs to make her laugh, too.

"Honestly, child, I don't know what to do with you," Mrs. Umbra said, shaking her head at Reneey. "You'll end up a Dark sorceress yet, if you don't have someone watching you constantly."

"No, she won't," Lyndotia said with a grin. "Because if she tries anything, I'll knock her up-side the head and she'll get some sense back into her. Right, Rea?"

"Right, Lynni," Reneey said. Then she whispered jokingly to her sister, "Or else you'll wipe their memories for me and get me out of trouble. 'Cuz that's what big sisters are for, right?"

Lyndotia just smiled and didn't say anything. The truth was that sometimes she _did_ wonder what would happen to her sister if she carried on like she was now. She was almost certain to end up in Slytherin when she went to Hogwarts -- she was too shrewd and cunning for her own good -- and Lyndotia didn't know what she could do if that were to happen. Even good witches and wizards were turned to the Dark Side when they were surrounded by all those pureblood maniacs in Slytherin House, and Lyndotia didn't know what she would do if that were to happen to her sister.

Even though her father was Lord Voldemort -- or perhaps _because_ of it -- Lyndotia had never had even the slightest desire to put any stock in the pureblood mania. In fact, the whole thing rather infuriated her. It would probably surprise most people to see what a down-to-earth, sensible person she was. Then again, none of them (except for Tasha Umbra, Albus Dumbledore, and of course Lord Voldemort) knew about Lyndotia's mother, either.

There was a very good reason why Lyndotia and Reneey did not have the same last name. Naturally, they had been given their mothers' surnames, as they could not go around being called Lyndotia and Reneey Voldemort. However, there were only four people who knew the truth about why Lyndotia had not grown up with Letaira Elumo, her birth mother.

Eleven years before, when Voldemort had been nearing the peak of his power, he had decided that he wanted an heir. His way of going about finding a suitable mother for this heir was a strange one, however; he had staked out the Ministry of Magic itself, and it was there that he found Letaira.

Letaira Elumo had originally come from America, across the sea, and her accent and her beauty were intriguing. She had a long sheet of thick, dark brown hair and almond-shaped, pale green eyes. A year later, it was proven that she had passed both of these on to the baby girl that she bore. It was only after this that Lord Voldemort released the Imperius Curse that he had placed on her, believing (accurately) that the gentle mother would not leave behind her baby daughter to flee from the Dark Lord.

Letaira named the baby Lyndotia Ahnashawn Elumo, and Voldemort was pleased; it was a name worthy of Slytherin's newest heiress, he thought. However, he then found out something that he had not known before: Letaira Elumo's father was a Squib, and her mother a Muggle-born witch. That made Letaira a Mudblood as much as her mother before her, and that made Lord Voldemort exceedingly angry.

He killed Letaira Elumo the week before Lyndotia's first birthday.

However, he now had no idea what to do with the child. She was a half-blood, if that, but she was of Salazar Slytherin's bloodline; he could not kill her, or at least, not yet. Nonetheless, he also could not bear to put up with a baby; he had never been able to stand the cries of young children, and Lyndotia wailed for her mother for weeks after Letaira's death.

So, he gave Lyndotia over to be cared for by Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, who had a young son of about the same age. And there she stayed, while Lord Voldemort began anew his quest for an heir.

As Lyndotia's mother had been no better than a Muggle to his eyes, Voldemort apparently did not find her to be a suitable heiress. So he again searched for a mother to his heir, this time making sure that she was a pureblood.

It was then that he found Tasha Umbra, a tall witch with black hair and almond-colored eyes. She, too, was put under the Imperius Curse; but this time it was lifted before her child was born. This was not by Voldemort's choice, but because two months after Tasha became pregnant, he met his downfall in little Harry Potter.

So Tasha Umbra awoke to find herself pregnant with Lord Voldemort's child, and caring for a nearly two-year-old girl. She knew the girl's story, because there had been short spaces of time while she was under the Imperius Curse when she was almost herself again, short spaces of time which she could now remember.

Tasha went to the first person she could think of who might be able to help: Albus Dumbledore. He was sympathetic, but there was not much that he could do, either. He advised that Tasha keep Lyndotia, and the baby, when it was born, away from the prying eyes of wizards and tell no one of their father's identity. The wizarding world was still shaken, he said, and they might try to harm the innocent because of the misdeeds of the father.

When Lyndotia was old enough to understand, Tasha told her all of this. She had said that Lyndotia was the only one who could decide who to tell this secret to, but Lyndotia had told no one, not even Reneey. She did not want her sister to have to bear the same burden. Now, however, Lyndotia was beginning to doubt her choice.

Would it make a difference, if she told Reneey what Voldemort had done? Would it make her stop joking -- or was she even joking? -- about all those horrible things? Lyndotia didn't know, but she couldn't bring herself to tell her sister now.

"You know, this place looks bigger and bigger every time we come."

Lyndotia looked up when her sister spoke, and realized that they were inside Gringotts. Somehow she had come all this way, lost in thought, without noticing where she was.

"Lynni?" Reneey asked slowly. "You all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Lyndotia answered, shaking her head. "Just thinking, is all." Reneey nodded, but she looked suspicious just the same.

Being inside Gringotts didn't help to clear Lyndotia's head. As they rode down to her vault -- it _was_ hers, along with all that was in it, because it had belonged to her mother years before -- Lyndotia kept watching the mingled light and darkness swirl past. _Elumo and Umbra -- Light and Shadow,_ she thought slowly. _Just like me and Reneey. I wonder if she ever thinks of things like that? Nah, probably not; she can't stay serious for long enough._

Getting out of the bank and into the crowded streets of Diagon Alley made Lyndotia feel better. She laughed with Reneey at the hag wearing a balaclava who stood outside an apothecary and pointed out an old witch who was wearing a hat with a stuffed raven on top of it. At last, after picking up Lyndotia's cauldron, scales, potions ingredients, and books, there were only two things left: her robes and her wand.

Mrs. Umbra pointed out Ollivander's and Madam Malkin's and told Lyndotia to go get fitted for robes and buy a wand while she and Reneey went to get her a present. Lyndotia was perfectly fine with going alone, but Reneey didn't want to let her go until Mrs. Umbra whispered something in her ear; then she grinned and nodded.

Madam Malkin was a plump witch with a broad smile who made Lyndotia stand on a footstool so that she could pin the robes up to the proper length. There was another girl with a long blond braid standing next to Lyndotia with half finished robes. She looked about Lyndotia's age, and she smiled and asked, "Are you a first year, too?"

"Yes," Lyndotia answered, grinning back; it seemed that the girl's smile was contagious.

"I'm Hannah Abbott."

"I'm Lyndotia Elumo; it's nice to meet you," she said, remembering her manners.

"Nice to meet you, too." Hannah paused for a moment and then said in a rush, "Are you as excited about going to Hogwarts as I am?"

Lyndotia laughed. "I don't know exactly how excited you are, but I'm pretty excited, yes."

"I've been wanting to go for years and years, ever since my cousin Christopher went."

"I only have a younger sister; she's nine."

"I have another cousin who is nine."

"Do you have a lot of cousins or something?" Lyndotia asked with a grin.

"Well, mine is an old wizarding family," Hannah answered sheepishly, "so I'm related to almost everyone _somehow_. You're probably my fifth cousin or something if your family are magical."

"My mother was from America."

"Oh, really? That's interesting! I've never met anyone from America before."

"She's dead, though. She died when I was really small."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Hannah paused, obviously trying to think of something else to say. At last she settled on, "So, what House do you want to be in?"

"I don't know," Lyndotia said slowly. "Anything but Slytherin."

"Yeah, really," Hannah agreed, nodding her head. "I think I'll probably be in Hufflepuff, both of my parents were."

"Hard-working, just, and loyal," Lyndotia said with a smile. "Those are good traits to have."

Hannah positively beamed at that. "Oh, I'm glad you think so! You know, a lot of people say that Hufflepuffs are cowards and stupid and all sorts of terrible things."

Lyndotia grinned and said with a laugh in her voice, "Well, you must not be _very_ much of a coward if you think that but you just said to someone you didn't know that you wanted to be in Hufflepuff."

"There you go, dear," Madam Malkin said, smiling at Lyndotia. "All done."

"Well, bye, then, Lyndotia," Hannah said with a smile.

"Bye, Hannah," Lyndotia answered; she was smiling, too. "See you at Hogwarts."

"Yes, see you at Hogwarts."

As she walked to Ollivander's, carrying her new uniform, Lyndotia thought about what had just been said. When asked what House she wanted to be in, she had said, "Anything but Slytherin." But was that really likely? After all, her father was Slytherin -- her father was _descended_ from Slytherin. Did she really have a chance of being Sorted into any other House?

When Lyndotia open the door of Ollivander's, a bell tinkled faintly. She looked around for a shopkeeper, and suddenly an old man with very pale eyes was standing behind the counter, looking at her. He looked at her for a moment and then asked quietly, "What is your name, dear?"

"Lyndotia Elumo."

"Hm, Elumo.. I do not recognize that name."

"It's -- it's American, sir," Lyndotia stammered. It was unnerving, the way those misty eyes seemed to stare into her.

"Ah, I see," Mr. Ollivander said, nodding as if this explained a great mystery. Then he suddenly plucked a box off of a shelf and opened it, offering Lyndotia a rather short, dark wand. "Oak and unicorn hair, eight inches, pliable," he said softly. She picked it up and made to wave it, but Ollivander snatched it away. "No, not that one, then," he murmured as he selected another one.

"Holly and dragon heartstring, ten inches, rather bendy." However, this was apparently not the right wand, either, because Ollivander snatched it away, too. A dozen tries later, Lyndotia was getting discouraged, but Ollivander looked quite amused. Then finally:

"Willow and phoenix feather, eleven inches, swishy." When Lyndotia touched up this one, there was an instant warmth in the tips of her fingers; it spread from there to the rest of her body, and a thrill of anticipation seemed to build up inside her. Taking the wand, she gave it a gentle twirling wave, and red and gold sparks flew from the end of the wand, forming a glowing star that hovered in the air for a few seconds and then scattered with a soft pop.

"Very nice," Ollivander said with a smile, taking the wand and replacing it in its box. As he did so, there was a sudden sound of applause; Lyndotia turned to see Mrs. Umbra and Reneey standing in front of the window. Mrs. Umbra was holding a barn owl in a golden cage, and Reneey was waving two ice cream cones -- chocolate-and-caramel-with-almonds -- vigorously in the air. Both of them were clapping their free hand against their other arm, much to the barn owl's displeasure.

Lyndotia paid Mr. Ollivander seven Galleons for the wand and picked it up, along with her uniform. Just as she reached the door, it opened and Hannah came in. There was a short blond woman following her, who Lyndotia guessed was her mother.

"Ooh," Hannah said excitedly, looking at the box in Lyndotia's hand. "Did you --?"

"Willow and phoenix feather," Lyndotia said with a huge grin, brandishing the box with one hand. Hannah beamed and, as Lyndotia walked out of the shop, Hannah whispered just loud enough for her to hear: "Good luck!"


	2. The Hogwarts Express

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff. And Reneey belongs to.. well, Reneey. XD

A/N: I have no clue why I keep writing more on this at random times. I think it just gets the RPing fever out of my bones, since I can't load the board on which I usually RP.

Anyway, chapter two...

* * *

**Chapter Two -- The Hogwarts Express**

It felt like ages before September the first for Lyndotia, but to Reneey, the time went by all too quickly. Soon her sister would be going off to school, where she couldn't follow for two whole years! It wasn't fair, she shouldn't be expected to stay behind just because she was a little younger than Lyndotia.

She told her mother so the week before Lyndotia was supposed to leave for Hogwarts. Mrs. Umbra said that she was being silly, that Lyndotia would write to her all the time, and that the time would fly by and the next thing she knew, she would be packing her trunk for Hogwarts, too. Reneey wasn't sure she believed that, but she didn't argue just then.

When September the first finally came, though, Reneey spoke of nothing else. While Mrs. Umbra was levitating Lyndotia's trunk downstairs, Reneey told her how much she wanted to go to Hogwarts. While Lyndotia was getting in the car, Reneey said how _very_ much she wished she could go to school with her big sister. By the time they got to Platform 9 3/4, Mrs. Umbra was getting severely agitated, but Reneey still would not give up.

Lyndotia dragged her trunk onto the train, found an empty compartment, and dropped it there, along with her owl, Sharein, in her cage. She couldn't lift her trunk into the rack overhead, so she had to leave it in the middle of the floor. There was a grunting behind her, and she turned to see Hannah Abbott and a girl she didn't know heaving their trunks in, as well.

"You don't mind if we ride in here with you?" Hannah asked Lyndotia.

"Of course not! I could definitely do with some company. You get a lot more nervous once you're actually on the train, don't you?"

"I'll say," the other girl said with a laugh, and Hannah dropped her trunk, saying, "Oh, yeah! Lyndotia Elumo, this is Susan Bones; Susan, Lyndotia."

"Nice to meet you," Susan said in a sweet, soft voice.

"Charmed," Lyndotia answered, a grin spreading across her face. Then she heard a voice through the window, saying loudly, "Irina Rain Umbra, if you ask me one more time if you can go, I won't let you even when you're old enough!"

Hannah and Susan laughed, but Lyndotia looked sullen. "That's my sister, Reneey, getting yelled at there," she said grimly. "She's been saying for three days straight that she wants to go with me. I wonder if she'll be all right, at home with Mum?"

"I'm sure she will be," Hannah said reassuringly, patting her arm. "Lots of people go off to Hogwarts and have to leave their younger brothers and sisters behind. None of _them_ end up with anything happening to them."

Lyndotia felt a little better at that, but just then Susan broke in, saying, "Wait, I thought your name was Lyndotia _Elumo_? But your sister is called Irina _Umbra_?"

Even though she had known this was coming, it didn't help Lyndotia to feel any better about it. "Yeah," she admitted. "We're only half sisters, but Reneey's mum raised both of us, so it doesn't really matter. We have our mothers' last names, you see. _My_ mother died when I was little, and I went to live with Mum when I was about two. Although if I were you, I wouldn't call her Irina; if she hears you, you'll get cursed before you know what's happening."

Hannah laughed and said, "I'll be sure to remember that."

"Oh," Susan said slowly, and she looked sorry she had asked. "I didn't mean to bring up a touchy subject; did I?"

"It's all right," Lyndotia answered, smiling again. "I'll be right back, though; I have to go say goodbye to Mum and Reneey."

Hannah and Susan nodded, and Lyndotia left the compartment. As she did so, she noticed a blond boy staring at her as if she had dragon pox. His pale eyes flickered from her face to the trunk with her initials on it, and then Lyndotia was past him and getting off the train again.

Reneey and Mrs. Umbra both hugged her, and then: "Mum, can't I go, please...?"

Mrs. Umbra was turning around to berate Reneey for this when another voice said, "No, Ginny, now be quiet!"

Reneey stared at her mother and said, "_What_!? That wasn't me!"

Lyndotia couldn't help it; she had to laugh.

When Lyndotia returned to the compartment where Hannah and Susan were, she discovered that they were no longer alone. The blond boy who had been looking at her as she left had brought his trunk inside, along with two other boys who looked as if they might be the very ones that the term "muscle for brains" was intended to describe.

"Hello," Lyndotia said politely when she came into the compartment.

The blond boy responded with, "Hello," and the taller of the two huge sluggish-looking boys grunted in response. Lyndotia looked (and felt) uncomfortable, and sat down next to Hannah. It was only then that she realized that her trunk was gone.

"Hey -- where are my things!?" she asked, looking to the middle of the floor, where she had left the red-and-black trunk earlier. Sharein was asleep in her cage next to the window, but the trunk was nowhere in sight.

"Oh, Crabbe here moved it onto the luggage rack for you," said the pale boy, nodding his head toward the taller of the two other boys and pointing to the space above Lyndotia's head.

"Oh," she said uncertainly. "Well, thank you, then."

There was a pause, and then the pale boy said, "LAE. Those are pretty unique initials. You're from a wizarding family, I guess?"

"Yes," Lyndotia answered simply, not really wanting to attempt an explanation again.

"What's your surname?"

"Elumo. Lyndotia Ahnashawn Elumo. You probably haven't heard it, it's an American name."

"I have heard it," the pale boy said, his eyes widening. "I thought I recognized you! Of course, I haven't seen you since we were about two years old, but I've seen old photographs of you with me and my mother. I'm Draco Malfoy."

Hannah and Susan exchanged dark looks, and Lyndotia looked wary of continuing the conversation. "Yes," she said at last, "Mum told me that I stayed with you and your family for a while."

"It wasn't a while, it was almost a whole year."

"It was a long time ago," Lyndotia said quietly, shaking her head. "A lifetime ago..."

"It wasn't that long ago, only a few years," Draco Malfoy said. Then he smiled and added, "Mother said I used to get very jealous of you because I thought you were her favorite."

Lyndotia thought he had a rather nice smile, but it didn't look like he used it very often. He was probably going to be a Slytherin, too, knowing his family; but maybe, just maybe, that didn't mean he was a lost cause.

"Lyndotia? Is something the matter?" Hannah had put a hand on Lyndotia's arm, a look of concern in her face.

"I'm fine," Lyndotia answered, forcing a smile. "It's just that thinking about it.. reminds me of my mother."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Draco said at once, and there was actually the smallest hint of regret in his voice. "I didn't mean to.. well.. it mustn't be a very fond memory."

Lyndotia smiled again, her soft green eyes sad. "No.. it's not."

The compartment door slid open, and there stood a rather round boy with a pink face who looked very worried.

"Neville!" Hannah said, standing up. "What's the matter?"

"Hannah, have you seen a toad?" the boy named Neville asked, looking on the verge of tears. "I've lost him, and I've been looking all over, but no one's seen him..."

"No, I'm sorry," Hannah answered, looking around to the other people in the compartment. "Have any of you seen one?"

Lyndotia shook her head, and so did Susan and Draco. Crabbe and the other boy remained perfectly still; Neville apparently interpreted this as a no.

"Thanks anyway," Neville said sadly. Then his face brightened and he asked suddenly, "Do you know who's down at the end of the train, Hannah?"

"Ernie?" Hannah guessed.

"No -- Harry Potter!"

Draco looked very interested at this, but Lyndotia was apprehensive. She didn't want to meet Harry Potter here, maybe not ever. She didn't think she could bear the shame of knowing it was her own father who had killed the boy's parents and given him that lightning scar that was already legend.

"Are you serious?" Susan asked, seemingly in awe. "_The_ Harry Potter?"

"Yeah," Neville answered, looking important at being the conveyor of such news. "He even has the scar."

"Wow," Susan whispered, but then Neville looked downcast again and murmured something about going to look for his toad.

When he closed the compartment door, Draco stood up. "I'm going to see if it's true," he said rather loudly. Then he looked straight at Lyndotia and asked, "Want to come?"

"Oh, no, thanks," she said immediately, shaking her head. "I'd.. rather not."

Draco shrugged and said, "Suit yourself." Then he and his two friends left, leaving the three girls alone.

"You really grew up at Malfoy Manor!?" Hannah asked immediately, staring at Lyndotia in awe.

"Oh, no," Lyndotia answered quickly, shaking her head. "After my mother died, I stayed there for a while. Until my father met Reneey's mother."

Hannah and Susan must have noticed how bitterly she said the word "father," but they said nothing of it. Or maybe they just didn't have time, because at that moment, the compartment door slid open again, and in walked two boys who seemed rather annoyed.

"Sorry," said one of them, who had curly, dark hair, "but is there room in here? We can't find a compartment, yet." Lyndotia noticed immediately that he had deep blue eyes, because they were looking directly at her.

"I'm not sure," Hannah said, looking at the seats.

"There are three others who are in here already," Lyndotia explained, her soft green eyes meeting the boy's deep blue ones. "One of you could probably sit here on this side," she pointed toward the space next to her, "but I don't know if both of you can fit. Two of the boys who are sitting over there are rather big, you see."

"Ah, we'll manage," the second boy said as he stepped into the compartment. He was a tall boy with shaggy, red-brown hair and hazel eyes that looked rather amused. "I can probably fit over here," he added, taking a seat on the other side. "Kyle, you'd best sit over there." He gestured toward the seat next to Lyndotia, and for some reason, there was a twinkle in his eye.

"All right, then," the boy named Kyle said, hoisting his trunk into the overhead space. He had an owl, too; a gorgeous great horned owl with round orange eyes.

"I'm Kyle Moon, by the way," he said, his blue eyes roaming over Susan and Hannah and lighting on Lyndotia again.

"Susan Bones."

"Hannah Abbott."

"Lyndotia Elumo."

"And I'm Christian Shore," said the tall boy, inclining his head.

"Of course you are," Kyle said, his blue eyes gleaming. "You only wrote your name in gold on the side of the Hogwarts Express. Honestly, I don't think whoever cleans it will be very happy with you."

"Oh, shut up, Kyle! You know my name already, anyway. _I_ was speaking to these three lovely ladies." He winked at Hannah, who turned scarlet; but Lyndotia laughed.

"What's so funny!?" he demanded, looking affronted.

"Nothing," she said, choking back more laughter and meeting his eyes. "It's just I was reminded of a boy I know -- his name's Ted Barrow -- who thinks he's all cool and everything. Only he can't get any girl to like him, because he chases after them all."

The compartment door slid open again, and the three boys were back. The one whose name Lyndotia didn't know was rubbing his knuckle and scowling.

Kyle's eyes found Draco at almost the same time that Draco's found him. "Malfoy," he said coolly.

"Moon."

"So, who are you and Crabbe and Goyle planning on terrorizing today, Malfoy?" Christian asked in a stony voice.

"No one at the moment, Shore, but if you don't shut your mouth, I'll shut it for you."

Lyndotia looked at the three glaring boys and at Crabbe and Goyle, who were cracking their knuckles. Kyle's hand twitched toward his wand, but Lyndotia grabbed his arm.

"Knock it off," she said fiercely, her green eyes darkening. Then she looked at Draco and, still wearing that fierce I'll-curse-your-head-off-if-you-don't-shut-it look, added, "You're not toddlers, any of you. Why don't you act it? Or do you want to get expelled before we even get there?"

Kyle looked abashed, and Draco like he didn't want to argue for once. Christian, however, plunged a hand into his pocket; but before he could aim, Lyndotia was on her feet, her own wand drawn and pointed at him. "You try to curse anyone in here and there's a good chance of it hitting someone you didn't intend it to. You hurt my friends and so _help_ me, I'll wipe that smug look off your face."

Hannah and Susan looked surprised that the quiet girl they had befriended could be so straightforward and take charge like that. Kyle stood up and put a hand on Lyndotia's wand arm and throwing a glare at Christian, who lowered his wand at once. "It's all right," he said gently. "Nobody's gonna curse anybody. You can calm down."

Lyndotia's green eyes swept the room and glanced at Kyle's blue ones before she lowered her wand and sat down at last. Kyle followed suit.

"Better watch it, Lyndotia," Draco said suddenly, a gleam in his eyes, "or you'll end up in Gryffindor, with an attitude like that."

"And what if I did?"

Whatever answer Draco had expected, that wasn't it. He opened his mouth, closed it again, and at last blurted out, "But you're --"

"I know quite well who I am, thank you," she said loudly, her eyes flashing dangerously. "And I _also_ know quite well that my mother was killed by a curse, Draco. I'm not watching anyone get cursed to death because of someone's bad aim."

"Oh, like either of them can work a decent curse, anyway," Draco scoffed.

"You don't know that. No one does except them, and if they mess up, it could be too late, now, couldn't it?"

Draco fell silent, and Hannah hugged Lyndotia's arm appreciatively. "Oh, thank you!" she breathed, and Lyndotia just smiled back at her.

"I'm sorry," Kyle said quietly, and when Lyndotia looked at him, she was shocked to see the real pain in his deep blue eyes. "We didn't mean to.. I'm sorry. I know how you feel, though. My father was an Auror, and he was killed by and Unforgivable Curse before He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named fell. Killed by little Malfoy here's father," he added coldly, glaring at Draco.

"He was under the Imperius Curse," Draco said heatedly, glaring right back at Kyle. "That wasn't his fault!"

"It doesn't really matter," Kyle said, shaking his head. "I'll never be able to forget it. No matter how hard I try."

Then an announcement sounded loud in their ears, telling them that Hogsmeade Station was near. In the rummaging for school uniforms, their conversation came to an abrupt end.


	3. Where She Belongs

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff, including the Sorting Hat song.

A/N: Yup, Sorting. Awesomeness. Lots of characters getting Sorted who weren't mentioned in the canon Sorting (mostly because I made them up XD) or who were never actually placed, just mentioned. I basically just made extra characters to fill dormitories of five, so that way I have plenty of characters. (I love having a good-sized cast.)

Oh, yes, and if I don't update so much, it's because I have a very limited time on the computer now thanks to my aunt, so I probably won't be able to keep up updates as quickly; but don't worry, updates _will_ be coming no matter what. :)

Thanks to **firequeenAzula** and **vix of the night** for reviewing the previous two chapters. :)

And now for chapter three...

* * *

**Chapter Three -- Where She Belongs**

Lyndotia didn't know how she ever got out of the Hogwarts Express; she just seemed to find herself there, on the boarding platform, standing with the rest of her compartment and their luggage. "Where do we go?" Hannah asked worriedly. Just then a voice called, "Firs' years! Firs' years over here!"

Lyndotia glanced first at Kyle and then at Draco, both of whom looked just as bewildered as she did. She went after the voice, and the rest of them followed her. And find its speaker, she did -- a man who was about twice as tall as anyone she had ever met, with a tangle of black hair and a beard to match. She might have been frightened if there was not a kind smile in his black eyes.

They were instructed to follow him, and they all did; down a steep, narrow path which was very dark. The huge man said that they would be able to see Hogwarts soon, and he was right -- just then, they turned around a bend and there was a chorus of "Ooohs" and "Aahs" from the first years.

It was gorgeous. Every window in the castle was glowing yellow, and the light was reflected on the lake that stood between it and them. The stars couldn't even outshine that castle.

"No more'n four to a boat!" the huge man shouted, and Lyndotia saw the boats then -- a whole fleet of small boats waiting for them at the shore. Draco and his two friends took one boat, and Lyndotia, Hannah, and Susan took another, and were joined by a girl with pale skin, light blue eyes, and a waist-length sheet of stunningly silver hair. Kyle seemed disappointed about something as he got into another boat with Christian and two boys Lyndotia didn't know.

The boats glided across the lake with ease, and there wasn't a word from anyone as they went. Everyone was staring at the beautiful castle, and Lyndotia could hardly believe that was where she would be going to school for the next seven years.

They sailed under a long curtain of ivy into a underground harbor, and everyone got out of their boats. Kyle and Christian joined them again, and so did Draco and his two friends. Then --

"Oy, you there! Is this your toad?"

"Trevor!"

Neville and his toad had been reunited with his toad, and Lyndotia couldn't help grinning.

Then they were moving up a passageway, following Hagrid's lamp. When the passageway ended, they came out onto a lawn of damp grass which was so close to the castle that Lyndotia was surprised. Then they came up to the huge oak front door, and the huge man knocked with a gigantic fist.

The door opened at once, and inside stood a tall witch with emerald green robes and black hair that was pulled back in a tight bun. She looked very stern.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."

Professor McGonagall opened the door wide, so that they caught a glimpse of the entrance hall. A girl behind Lyndotia gasped. It was huge, bigger than any room Lyndotia had ever seen minus Gringotts, and torches cast light and flickering shadow along the walls.

They all followed Professor McGonagall across the hall, and Lyndotia heard many people talking beyond a door to the right -- but the professor led them through another door, to a small, empty room. It was rather hard for all of them to fit, so they stood close together, and looked back to Professor McGonagall as if awaiting instructions.

Professor McGonagall welcomed them and explained about the start-of-term banquet, that they must be Sorted into their houses, and about the House Cup. Then she swept off, saying that she would return when everything was ready.

A buzz of talk began at once. Hannah was looking very nervous, and Susan was very white. Kyle grinned at Lyndotia and said, "So -- _are_ you hoping for Gryffindor? You sure acted like one in the compartment today."

Lyndotia smiled slightly. "I don't know yet," she said slowly, shaking her head.

Kyle grinned and said exactly what she was thinking: "Just so long as it's not Slytherin, eh?"

"And what's wrong with Slytherin, Moon?" Draco drawled, staring at him coldly.

"Nothing, if you want to be a Dark wizard," Kyle answered.

"I don't care what house I'm in," Susan spoke up, "just as long as at least one of my friends is in it." She smiled slightly at Hannah and Lyndotia.

"How exactly do they Sort us?" asked a soft, pretty voice, and Lyndotia turned to see the silver-haired girl who had been in the boat with her.

"The Sorting Hat," Lyndotia answered with a smile. "Mum told me that the founders themselves enchanted it, a thousand years ago!"

"A thousand years?" the girl asked, awe in her voice. "This school is that old?"

"You mean you didn't know!?" Draco asked incredulously, his eyes wide. "Are your parents Muggles or something?"

"My dad is, yes," the girl said, sounding uncomfortable.

Then several people gasped, and Lyndotia turned to look. Her eyes widened as several ghosts came floating through the wall and were now gliding across the room.

"Didn't you know there are ghosts at Hogwarts?" Kyle asked.

"Yes," Lyndotia answered, "but I've never _seen_ one before -- let alone so many of them!"

For some reason, Kyle grinned at the look of awe on her face.

Then Professor McGonagall was back, leading them through to the Great Hall. No one talked much -- in fact, they barely seemed to be breathing. It felt like ages before they reached the Hall, and ages more before they finally made it up to where the old, frayed Sorting Hat stood on a four-legged stool. The school stared at it, and then the brim opened and it began to sing.

_Oh, you may not think me pretty_

_But don't judge by what you see_

_I'll eat myself if you can find_

_A smarter hat than me_

_You can keep your bowlers black_

_Your top hats sleek and tall_

_For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_

_And I can cap them all_

_There's nothing hidden in your head_

_The Sorting Hat can't see_

_So put me on and I will tell you_

_Where you ought to be_

_You might belong in Gryffindor_

_Where dwell the brave at heart_

_Their daring nerve and chivalry_

_Set Gryffindors apart;_

_You might belong in Hufflepuff_

_Where they are just and loyal_

_Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_

_And unafraid of toil;_

_Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw_

_If you've a ready mind_

_Where those of wit and learning_

_Will always find their kind;_

_Or perhaps in Slytherin_

_You'll make your real friends_

_Those cunning folk use any means_

_To achieve their ends_

_So put me on, don't be afraid_

_And don't get in a flap_

_You're in safe hands (though I have none)_

_For I'm a Thinking Cap!_

Applause burst out all over the Hall, and then Professor McGonagall unrolled a long scroll with all their names on it.

"Abbott, Hannah."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Lyndotia beamed at her friend as Hannah went off to sit with the Hufflepuffs.

"Bones, Susan."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Susan took a seat beside Hannah and the two of them grinned at Lyndotia, who was clapping along with the Hufflepuffs.

"Boot, Terry."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Brocklehurst, Mandy."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Brown, Lavender!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Bulstrode, Millicent."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Carver, Cynthia."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Corner, Michael."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Crabbe, Vincent."

"SLYTHERIN!"

So _that_ was this Crabbe's real name! Lyndotia knew it couldn't have been just Crabbe, but somehow the name Vincent Crabbe seemed strange. Maybe it was because just "Crabbe" seemed to fit him better.

"Dane, Lloyd."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

And then...

"Elumo, Lyndotia!"

Lyndotia tossed back her thick, dark hair and walked forward, looking a lot more confident than she felt. As she did so, she noticed that one of the teachers -- a pale man with long black hair -- looked at her strangely. She didn't know why, but she was too worried about her Sorting to think about it.

The moment the Sorting Hat slipped over her eyes, a voice spoke up in her ear: "Hm, _you're_ an interesting one! Quite intelligent, that's always good.. very loyal.. exceptionally brave, more than many that I Sort.. and plenty of talent and cunning, that's --"

_Oh, no,_ Lyndotia thought, with a horrible pang of fear; she didn't want to be a Slytherin, it was like saying that following in Voldemort's footsteps was inevitable.

"Hm, perhaps no is right.. you could be great in Slytherin House, but I think not... Not quite the _mind_ for it..." Lyndotia finally let herself breathe again; she wasn't going to be a Slytherin!

"I think not Hufflepuff.. a bit too mischevious for their lot..." Lyndotia resisted the urge to laugh.

"So.. better be.. GRYFFINDOR!"

The Hat shouted the last word to the hall, and Lyndotia felt like her heart was expanding. Gryffindor! It was even better than she had expected.

She took off the Hat and put it back down on the stool. The Gryffindor table was clapping and cheering, and as Lyndotia sat down beside Lavender Brown, she spotted Draco Malfoy in the crowd still waiting to be Sorted. He looked like someone had just slapped him.

"Finnigan, Seamus."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Seamus took a seat on the other side of the table from Lyndotia, looking rather like he might faint.

"Francis, Delia."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Goldstein, Anthony."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Goyle, Gregory."

"SLYTHERIN!"

Gregory Goyle, Lyndotia thought; somehow, that one didn't sound right, either.

"Granger, Hermione."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Hermione came to sit on Lyndotia's other side, and Lyndotia beamed at her; the cheery mood in the Hall was infectious.

"Lane, Meredith."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Longbottom, Neville."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Neville started off to the Gryffindor table while still wearing the Sorting Hat. He got halfway there before he realized it, and he ran back to return it to the small stool.

"MacDougal, Morag."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Macmillan, Ernie."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

This must have been Hannah's friend Ernie, Lyndotia thought.

"Malfoy, Draco."

Lyndotia watched his Sorting, but she knew what was coming before it did. The Hat had barely touched his pale blond hair when it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!"

"Midgen, Eloise."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Moon, Kyle."

Lyndotia was curious about Kyle; he didn't seem to strictly fit into any of the categories, so she wasn't sure what was coming with his Sorting.

"RAVENCLAW!"

Kyle took off the Hat and started toward the Ravenclaw table. As he sat down, he winked at Lyndotia, who grinned back. Lyndotia noticed, however, that Draco's eyes narrowed at this.

"Morrow, Kathryn."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Norman, Adrian."

"RAVENCLAW!"

Lyndotia's right eyebrow raised. Three Ravenclaws in a row; that must be some sort of record.

"Nott, Theodore."

"SLYTHERIN!"

_So much for the Ravenclaw streak_, Lyndotia thought to herself.

"Parkinson, Pansy."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Patil, Padma."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Patil, Parvati."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Parvati came to sit with Hermione and Lyndotia, smiling nervously. Lyndotia thought it was strange that she wasn't in the same House as her twin sister, but didn't say anything.

"Perks, Sally-Anne."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Potter, Harry."

Half the Great Hall erupted into whispers. Lyndotia looked down, not really wanting to see the boy and know what her father had done to him. She couldn't look down forever, though, and so at last she looked back to the Sorting Hat just as it was placed over the head of a short, skinny boy with untidy jet-black hair.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry looked quite relieved, although Lyndotia didn't know why. She had expected that he would be a Gryffindor, she knew that his parents had been. The entire wizarding world knew that his parents had been.

It didn't help, though, that he sat down on directly opposite her, on the other side of the table. She noticed that he had green eyes, too, though his were brighter than Lyndotia's.

"Raines, Rosalie."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Shore, Christian."

Christian didn't really walk to the Sorting Hat; he threw his shoulders back and strutted forward with his head held high. Lyndotia laughed silently into her hand.

"RAVENCLAW!"

It was impossible to tell who was happier about this, Christian or Kyle. Kyle stood up and made a show of pretending like he was going to curse Christian and then clapping him on the back and sitting down with him, to the general amusement of the school. Again, Lyndotia noticed, Draco didn't look pleased.

"Sloane, Samantha."

As Samantha stepped up to the Sorting Hat, Lyndotia looked at her curiously, and so did most of the school. It was the girl who had been in the boat with Lyndotia, Hannah, and Susan!

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Samantha sat down next to Parvati, looking rather relieved, as well. Lyndotia wondered why so many new Gryffindors were so nervous; they couldn't have the same reason as she did, after all.

"Smith, Zacharias."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Thomas, Dean."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Dean sat down next to Harry, looking rather pleased with himself.

"Turpin, Lisa."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Weasley, Ron."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Ron made it over to the table, looking weak in the knees, and sat down between Dean and Harry.

"Zabini, Blaise."

"SLYTHERIN!"

With that, Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll, and the Sorting was over. Lyndotia, for one, was happy; she had finally found where she belonged, and it wasn't even in Slytherin.


	4. Pride and Honor

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff, including the Sorting Hat song.

A/N: --

Thanks to **firequeenAzula**, **Gaara1**, and **vix of the night** for reviewing!

And now for chapter three...

* * *

**Chapter Four -- Pride and Honor**

"Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"

Lyndotia couldn't help it; she had to laugh. Fortunately, this sound was drowned in the sudden roar of talk as dinner appeared on the gold plates in the middle of all the tables. She grabbed a piece of fried chicken and tore into it ravenously. She noticed that Harry, across from her, was staring at the food as if he had never seen anything quite like it before.

"Have you never heard about the feasts at Hogwarts?" she couldn't resist asking.

"No," Harry said, still looking as if he didn't know what to do with so much food. He didn't seem to want to elaborate, so Lyndotia didn't press the matter.

"_What_ is that boy doing?" asked a shrill voice to Lyndotia's left, and she saw Hermione staring at the Ravenclaw table. Lyndotia turned to look in the same direction and saw Kyle levitating a plate of pastries into the air, which were dropping one by one onto the heads of the other Ravenclaws. A few of them looked annoyed, but most were laughing; and so was Lyndotia, when she looked away. Hermione looked disapproving, but Samantha was grinning.

"Hey!" Lyndotia said, grinning back at her. "You _can_ smile after all! I was beginning to wonder."

Samantha looked down, embarrassed, but when she looked back at Lyndotia, her blue eyes were twinkling. "He's funny," she said shyly.

"That's Kyle Moon. He was in my compartment on the Hogwarts Express."

"Oh, I see. Is he nice?"

"I guess so. He is really funny, like you said. Did you see what he did after his friend Christian was Sorted?"

"Christian? That Shore boy?"

"Yeah."

"No, I was under the Sorting Hat. What did he do?"

"Kyle was going on like he was going to curse him, it was funny."

"He wasn't _really_ going to curse him, was he?" Samantha asked, sounding shocked.

Lyndotia laughed. "No, of course not! Christian's his friend. You should have heard them going on in the compartment. I guess they've known each other for a while. Most of the purebloods know each other."

"Oh. Well, I'm not."

"I'm not, either, so don't feel bad. My mother's parents were a Muggleborn and a Squib, so most people consider her not to have had any magical blood. My father's a halfblood."

"You're.. not very fond of your father?"

Lyndotia paused. "No.. no, I'm not."

Samantha was silent, apparently not sure what to say to this. After a moment, both girls went back to their supper.

Before Lyndotia realized how late it was, the meal had disappeared and Professor Dumbledore was standing up to give announcements again. There wasn't much that really interested her; in fact, Lyndotia felt very tempted to try to get into the Forbidden Forest just because she was told not to. Maybe there were interesting things in there. Sure, there might be dangers; but what fun could you have without a little risk?

Then they were dismissed to their common rooms and Lyndotia looked around for a prefect. There was one sitting not far away, a tall redheaded boy with horn-rimmed glasses. Lyndotia and the rest of the first years followed him, and as they went up the staircase, Kyle caught up with her.

"Knew you were gonna make Gryffindor!" he said almost proudly.

"What are you doing here?" Lyndotia asked curiously. "You should be with your house."

"I am! The Ravenclaw common room is in a tower, just like the Gryffindor one."

"Oh, really? I didn't know that."

"Yeah. It's really cool that you made Gryffindor. Wish you could've been Ravenclaw, though."

"The Hat considered putting me in Ravenclaw. It ruled out Slytherin and Hufflepuff, then finally decided on Gryffindor."

"Ah, I guess that means you've got a nice head on your shoulders and bravery to match. Nice."

Lyndotia grinned, but before she could answer, the Gryffindor prefect said loudly, "Gryffindors, this way!" and the Ravenclaw prefect called for his house to follow him. They were going in completely different directions now; Lyndotia guessed that one tower was in the east and one in the west.

"Bye, then!" Kyle called as he dashed back to walk beside Christian.

"Bye!"

Samantha was grinning widely when Lyndotia resumed her place in the Gryffindor line. "I think you _fancy_ him!" she whispered so that no one else could hear.

"Of course I don't, Samantha!" Lyndotia objected, though she could feel color rising in her cheeks. "Anyway, that's not proper Gryffindor pride or whatever it is that they prattle on about."

"Call me Sam, Lyndotia. Nobody calls me Samantha but my parents."

"All right, but you have to call me Lyn."

Sam grinned. "Deal."

There was a gasp at the head of the line and the prefect said loudly, "Peeves, show yourself!"

Lyndotia gasped as a strangely dressed little man, wearing an evil grin, popped out of nowhere holding a bunch of walking sticks. "A poltergeist!" she breathed, grinning strangely.

"How do you know?" Sam asked curiously.

"Mum -- well, she's my sister Reneey's mother, but she raised me since I was two -- my mother died when I was really young..."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"It was a long time ago.. but anyway, Mum's parents in Uzbekistan live in an old, _old_ ancestral house, and there's a poltergeist who lives there. She's quite amusing, really; she taught all sorts of mischief to Reneey and me."

Lyndotia's eyes twinkled, and Sam grinned. Then this poltergeist -- Peeves -- dropped the walking sticks on top of a boy's head and zoomed off. Lyndotia bit back an urge to congratulate him on this performance and followed the rest of the Gryffindors.

They stopped in front of a portrait of a large lady wearing a frilly pink dress. "Password?" she asked.

"Caput Draconis."

She nodded and the portrait swung forward, revealing a hole in the wall. They climbed through to find a comfortable round room full of squashy armchairs and with a roaring fire in the fireplace. The prefect tod them where their dormitories were, and though a number of the Gryffindors stayed downstairs, Lyndotia and Sam went upstairs at once.

"Nice," Sam said at once, looking at the inviting four posters with crimson curtains.

"I'll say!" Lyndotia said enthusiastically, hopping up onto one of the beds next to the window. "I like this!" And with that, she stood up and jumped, rocketing up two feet in the air. She looked down to see Sam doubling over with silent laughter.

"What's so funny? This is awesome! You should try it!"

"Are you kidding? I'll break my neck!"

"Of course you won't! There are probably cushioning charms or something to keep you from falling hard, even." She jumped off from the peak of her jump and landed effortlessly on the floor. "All right," she admitted, "no cushioning charms; but still, it's _fun_. C'mon, Sam, just try!"

Sam looked doubtfully at the bed and then at Lyndotia's face. "Oh, all right," she said at last, "but if I kill myself, I'm coming back to haunt you for it."

Lyndotia laughed and agreed. Sam stood up on her bed and jumped tentatively. "Oh, come on!" Lyndotia objected. "That's not jumping!"

"Fine, then!" Sam cried and jumped with all her might. Her long silvery hair flew all around her and her blue eyes widened. She screamed, but it turned into a laugh after half a second and she kept bouncing. "This -- is -- _awesome_!"

"Didn't I tell you!?" Lyndotia asked, laughing, as Sam finally bounced off the bed and onto the floor. Her silver hair was all over her face, and Lyndotia was reminded of something.

"You never said anything about your family," she said suddenly, and Sam's smile faltered.

"Oh.. well, I'm half and half."

"Which of your parents is the witch or wizard?"

"Neither."

Lyndotia stared; then the silvery hair suddenly made sense. "You're not half _veela_!?" she asked incredulously.

Sam nodded, and Lyndotia gaped. "I didn't think that was possible," she said quietly. "I didn't think Muggles could even see veelas, I thought they were invisible to them, like dementors, or something."

"No," Sam said quietly, shaking her head. "They can see them, all right; but most veela consider them not worthy of paying attention to, or even of charming. My mother, though -- she charmed my father into marrying her, and then they had me. It must be really rare, a Muggle and a veela having a magical child."

"I would think so," Lyndotia answered. "I mean, veelas are magical, but not the same way we are. And Muggles.. wow, that's just amazing."

"It was very cowardly, though, what my mother did," Sam said quietly. "Muggles are even easier to seduce with our powers than wizards are. It would have been more honorable to throw herself off a building and save Dad the trouble." Then she scoffed and added, "Not that that would have done much good, since she can grow wings when she's angry and all..."

"Can you?" Lyndotia asked. "I've never met a half veela before, I just wonder..."

"I can't transform, no. If I get really, _really_ angry, though, I can throw fire."

"Wow!" Lyndotia said again. Then she sobered and added, "Don't worry about your mum, Sam. Maybe she tricked your dad a bit, but it's the same thing witches and wizards do, isn't it? They don't tell the Muggles what they are until after they're married."

"No, it's not the same," Sam said miserably. "The Muggles still have a choice that way. Granted, they might not know exactly what they're choosing, but they can still know the person they marry. My dad, though.. he's very happy when he's around my mum, because she can charm him, but I won't do it to anyone. He doesn't like it, that I'm magical. He doesn't like magic much at all."

"I'm sorry."

The dormitory door opened and in trooped the other three first year Gryffindor girls -- Hermione, Parvati, and Lavender, if Lyndotia remembered correctly.

"Well, I'm getting tired," Sam said loudly, catching Lyndotia's eye as if to tell her not to continue with the topic while the other three girls were there. Lyndotia nodded to show that she understood and changed into her pajamas, still thinking about Hogwarts and everything that had happened already that day.

_I should write Reneey first thing in the morning,_ she thought wearily as she climbed into bed. _She'll want to know that I've been Sorted.. although I don't know what she'll think about my being a Gryffindor..._


	5. Letters and Lessons

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff. Reneey belongs to... -drumroll- Reneey!

A/N: Yay, it's back! XD Yeah, my boyfriend's brother had a pool party for his birthday yesterday, so I didn't have a chance to be online. Here's the update now, though. :)

Thanks to **firequeenAzula**, **Gaara6**, **vix of the night**, and **Narcissa Moonlight** for reviewing!

Chapter five!

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**Chapter Five -- Letters and Lessons**

True to her own word, Lyndotia got up at six o'clock in the morning to hurry up to the Owlery -- once she found it, of course. It was closer to six-forty-five when she actually made it up there, and when she came up the steps, Sharein was just returning from the hunt, a dead frog in her beak. The owl swooped down to land on Lyndotia's shoulder, but the girl said quietly, "You go ahead and eat, Sha, okay? I have to write the letter to Rea first." Sharein hooted appreciatively and took off toward the rafters as Lyndotia managed to pull a quill and a bottle of scarlet ink from her bag.

_Dear Reneey,_

_I'm here! Hogwarts is beautiful, you'll never believe it when you see it the first time. First years come across the lake on boats, and the sight of the castle reflected in the water will take your breath away._

_The inside is amazing, too. The Great Hall is amazing -- it doesn't even look like there's a ceiling. It's bewitched to look like the sky outside, and it's really something to look up and see the stars through the roof. I wonder what it looks like when it rains?_

_The Sorting Hat took a long time to decide where to put me. At least, it seemed like a long time to me; it may have been only a few seconds, but it felt like at least forty-five. It had a bit of trouble deciding where I would fit in best._

_So, I'm sure you're anxious to hear where I am. Any guesses? Want me to send this letter without telling you, so that you can guess? Yeah, that would be fun. I might actually do it if I didn't know you would march up here and curse me for it._

_Well, I'm -- drumroll, please! -- and sit down -- you got the drumroll going? -- still sitting down? -- okay -- a Gryffindor! I bet you're surprised. Mum will be proud, though; she says my mother was in a house like Gryffindor at her school in America._

_Write back soon, so I can send Sharein back with another letter!_

_Love,_

_Lyn_

_P.S. -- When you write back with your reasons why I shouldn't be in Gryffindor and should request a transfer right away, don't use any names. I don't want the whole world knowing my family history on the off chance that Sha gets intercepted. It's bad enough that all the Slytherins will probably know by now, because I met Draco Malfoy on the Hogwarts Express and he recognized me._

Lyndotia sighed and rolled up the letter. Reneey would probably be fuming when she got it, so it wasn't likely she would pay much attention to the postscript. It was always worth a try, though.

"Ready, Sha?" Lyndotia called as she wrote Reneey's name on the outside of the letter. "Just take this back home to Rea for me, all right? And wait for her answer, I don't want Mum to have to let her use Xerxes. Oh, and she may blow up.. don't fly _too_ far away, okay?"

Sharein hooted in response and took off through the gap in the wall. Lyndotia looked after her for a moment before retreating back down the Owlery steps and setting off in what she hoped was the general direction of the Great Hall.

With a sigh, she sat down at the Gryffindor table fifteen minutes later. It felt like it would be ages before Reneey could come to school. Lyndotia still didn't think it was a good idea to leave her at home, but there wasn't anything she could do about it now. She could just hope that her sister would turn out all right in the end, even if she did get Sorted to Slytherin.

"Morning," Sam said with a smile as she sat down beside Lyndotia.

"Good morning," Lyndotia answered, without any real enthusiasm.

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing.. just worrying about my sister."

"I'm sure she'll be fine, Lyn."

"She'll live, yes. But if I'm not there, she might get into trouble. She does a lot of stuff that Mum never finds out about because I keep it quiet. Sometimes I even take the blame for her when Mum does find out."

"I bet she knows, anyway."

"My mum?"

"Yes. Mothers always know."

Lyn smiled slightly. "Maybe you're right. That doesn't mean Reneey won't get Slytherin, though."

"Maybe not, but she's still your sister. If you've done all that for her, she's bound to remember it even if she is a Slytherin, right?"

"It's not that I'm worried about. Reneey... Reneey's a lot like our father. She could end up in real trouble, not just with Mum."

"Your father.. is he in Azkaban or something?"

Lyndotia paused. "Something," she said quietly, shaking her head.

Sam was silent for a long moment, and then she brightened as she pulled two pieces of paper from her bag. "Course schedules!" she said excitedly.

Lyndotia took one and looked at it. "Herbology... History of Magic, great, I've heard that one's a snore..."

"Yeah, but we get Transfiguration and Charms, too!" Sam said, pointing. "Those ought to be fun!"

"Hopefully."

The moment Lyndotia made it to the queue outside of the greenhouses, she knew that Herbology was bound to be one of her favorite classes. It was double Herbology, with the Hufflepuffs, which meant that Hannah and Susan were there.

Susan squealed and pinched Hannah's arm when she spotted the Gryffindors coming across the lawn. Lyndotia laughed and poked Sam in the side, pointing at Hannah and Susan, who were bouncing up and down on their heels.

"You know them?" Sam wanted to know.

"Yeah -- I met Hannah in Diagon Alley, and she and Susan were in my compartment on the Hogwarts Express."

"Oh, them, too? Wow, your compartment must have been packed."

"Yeah, it was."

"What was?" Hannah asked as the Gryffindors met the Hufflepuffs.

"Our compartment was packed," Lyndotia answered.

"Oh, definitely!" Hannah and Susan said together.

"Good morning, class," said a brisk voice, and they all looked up to see a squat witch with flyaway hair standing at the head of the line. "I am Professor Sprout, and I hope you're all ready for your first Herbology lesson!"

As it turned out, they were studying dittany; but Lyndotia was disappointed that she didn't get to answer any questions. Hermione beat her to them all. Gryffindor still got the points, so Lyndotia was happy about that, but she still would have liked to have answered a question or two herself.

They set out recognizing dittany among other common plants, and Lyndotia was happy that Professor Sprout recognized her as well as Hermione, Neville, and Ernie. Next, they had to cultivate them, and Lyndotia was one of the few girls who enjoyed this. Then again, she had always loved to play in the dirt.

History of Magic was as bad as Lyndotia had predicted. Professor Binns was waiting for them in the class, and though a few people seemed interested to see that he was a ghost, they quickly slipped into a coma-like state as he droned on. Lyndotia gave up quickly; she could learn much better from her books, and _those_ were actually interesting.

Transfiguration was much more satisfying. Lyndotia had already discovered that she loved hands-on classes. Sam didn't like Transfiguration at all and didn't seem to have much flare for it. Hermione made her match into a perfect needle. Lyndotia's match turned silver, but didn't become pointed until ten minutes after class as she practiced during lunch.

Charms was directly after lunch, and it promised to be a very exciting class. Lyndotia had to stifle a laugh as Professor Flitwick toppled off his stack of books. She and Sam had to avoid looking at each other for ten minutes after that to keep from laughing. All in all, it was a very exciting day.

The next day promised to be exciting, as well, because it started off that way. When the post owls appeared, Sharein returned looking frazzled, shaking her feathers indignantly. "She give you a hard time, Sha?" Lyndotia asked quietly.

Sharein just nicked a piece of toast from one of the plates and flew back off toward the Owlery. Lyndotia unrolled the piece of parchment.

Why would it be trobled? Wasnt daddy a slytherin? Of corse I would, if you didn't tell me I would of gone to hogwarts and yell Crucio! Cause Thats the only spell I could pounce XD. Learned it from Lusuis. Anyway...  
GRFFINDORE! GRRFINDORE! GRRFINDORE! A GRFFI?!?! BUT DADDY WAS IN SLYTHERIN! I mean--how?--wah?--the hell?

Lyndotia shook her head. This was exactly the reaction she had expected. Well, there wasn't anything she could do about it. Maybe she should send Sharein back later with a letter for Mum...

"What's she say?" Sam asked tentatively.

"Pretty much what I thought she would," Lyndotia answered with a sigh, pushing the letter toward Sam, who picked it up and examined the sloppy writing warily. "Going on about Unforgivable Curses and Lucius Malfoy -- I wonder where Mum met him? Oh, and she can't figure out why that Hat would put me in Gryffindor, of course. You know, all that stuff."

"But why!? You're a Gryffindor if I ever saw one, getting me to take risks and standing up to those boys in your compartment. The way Hannah tells it, you stopped them killing each other, though I guess that was an exaggeration?"

"You bet it was an exaggeration," Lyndotia laughed. "Hannah has a habit of making things out to be more than they are, I think. And I may be a Gryffindor, but Reneey doesn't think I belong here. Our _father_ was in Slytherin, you see," she added darkly. "She will be, too, you mark my words."

Again, Sam looked concerned. "Your father," she began, but Lyndotia interrupted, "I'll tell you about it later, Sam. Too many people here."

Sam nodded, but she didn't seem to feel any better. "You know.. my mother has done a lot of things I don't agree with.. but that doesn't mean I'm doomed to do the same."

Lyndotia smiled; she couldn't help it. That really did make her feel better, at least a little better. "Thanks, Sam. _Really_."


	6. To Cure A Boil

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Let's see.. yeah, not much to say except sorry for taking so long. I was wrapped up with trying to get out chapter six of Sons of Reproach and didn't have time to write on this until last night.

Thanks to **firequeenAzula**, **Gaara6**, **Reneey Umbra**, **Narcissa Moonlight**, and **Ember Riddle** for reviewing!

Anyway, chapter six...

* * *

**Chapter Six -- To Cure A Boil**

"_Potions_!?" Lyndotia asked desperately.

"Yes," Sam replied glumly.

"But I don't _want_ to have Potions today," Lyndotia objected. "The Potions Master was staring at me when I went up to be Sorted, and he's been looking at me strange ever since."

Sam burst out laughing. "If the worst he does is _stare at you_, then consider yourself lucky. I've heard that Snape can be really nasty, especially to Gryffindors."

Lyndotia's eyes narrowed. "I'd like to see him try," she said coldly. "I'll talk Peeves into smashing his Potions storeroom. I'll switch his Veritaserum with water and then pour some of the Veritaserum into his goblet at breakfast and ask him embarrassing stuff in front of the whole school. I'll --"

"Shush, Hermione's coming!"

"Morning, Hermione."

"Good morning," Hermione said, sounding rather distracted, as she sat down across the table from Sam and Lyndotia.

"Something wrong?" Lyndotia asked, sounding genuinely concerned. Sam said nothing; she was a bit miffed at Hermione, who had always been in the dormitory before Sam and Lyndotia, and so prevented Lyndotia from telling Sam the secret so far.

"Classes," Hermione answered wearily. "I'm _so_ worried that I'm going to be horrible at everything. And _Potions_ is today."

"Yeah, right!" Lyndotia said, laughing. "You're tops at _everything_, Hermione! You think you're going to mess up at something as simple as Potions? It's like cooking, Hermione, only _way_ more cool. You get to use unicorn hairs and erumpent fluid in Potions, and Muggle cooking, there's no chance that anything will explode."

Hermione forced a smile and began to eat a piece of toast. Sam rolled her eyes.

"The girl's memorized her course books, can probably work every incantation in _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade One_ -- and she still has a panic attack at the start of a new subject!"

"Well," Lyndotia murmured in response to Sam's exasperated whisper, "at least she isn't convinced she's the best thing since Self-Stirring cauldrons."

"Yet," Sam muttered darkly.

Potions class was held in one of the large dungeons. Lyndotia didn't really notice the cold, but as the Gryffindors lined up outside of the door, Sam's teeth were chattering.

"The cold doesn't agree with me," she told Lyndotia.

"Here, you can have my cloak," Lyndotia offered.

"Thanks," Sam said gratefully. "I don't know _how_ you thought to bring it, though. I mean, it's not that cold yet -- except down here."

"It _is_ a little chilly," a voice drawled, and Lyndotia turned to see Draco and the Slytherins lining up, as well. "Here, Lyndotia, why don't _you_ take _my_ cloak?"

"Wh -- I'm not even cold," Lyndotia objected as he walked over, pulling his cloak from his shoulders as he went.

"Oh, it's all right -- I insist."

And so Lyndotia just stood there, feeling out of place among a line of Gryffindors, as Draco Malfoy fastened the silver buckles of his own cloak (complete with Slytherin crest) under her chin. "There we go," he said, stepping back to admire the effect. "You know, Slytherin green really brings out the color of your eyes."

"Blue would do the same for yours," Sam said, coming to her friend's rescue when she sensed that Lyndotia was at a loss for words. "Fancy transfering to Ravenclaw?"

"And what's your name?" Draco asked, his pale eyes narrowing.

"Sam Sloane."

Draco's eyes widened now. "I know about you," he said quietly. "You're the ve --"

"She doesn't want everyone knowing about that, Draco," Lyndotia said quickly. "Just like me."

Draco looked curious, but just said, "All right." Then he added in an undertone, "I didn't tell anyone, you know. I won't unless you say it's all right."

"Thank you," Lyndotia said, smiling in a grateful yet relieved manner.

"Hey, listen --"

"All right, enough jabbering," said a cold voice, and the assembled students looked up to see a tall, sallow-skinned, greasy-haired wizard who was dressed all in black. He was standing at the now open dungeon door and saying, "Everyone inside."

The people in front of her began to move, and Lyndotia started to do the same, but Draco caught her sleeve.

"Come sit with us," he hissed in her ear.

"What?"

"Me and my friends. Come sit with us."

"Well -- all right," she answered, thinking that at least she looked somewhat like a Slytherin, with Draco's cloak covering her robes. Maybe that had been his plan all along.

He smiled again at her answer, and kept his hold on her sleeve. He had a nice smile, Lyndotia thought.

Sam gave Lyndotia a curious look when she went with the Slytherins, but followed her just the same. And so they were seated across the dungeon from the rest of their House when Professor Snape began class with the roll call.

Lyndotia dreaded the time when her own name would be called, but she didn't have long to dread.

"Elumo, Lyndotia."

Those black eyes found Lyndotia before she had so much as moved. Snape seemed partly curious and partly wary. Could he _know_!?

"Present."

Finally, his dark eyes passed on down the list, and on to the next person. Lyndotia half suppressed a shudder, and Draco looked at her with something akin to concern in his eyes. "Are you cold?" he mouthed soundlessly as Snape gazed coldly at Seamus Finnigan.

Lyndotia shook her head and pretended to listen to Snape calling roll; but she didn't really hear a word that was said until after he had finished.

Next, he started in on Harry, and Lyndotia frowned. How did Snape expect a first year who had grown up with Muggles to know the things that he was asking? Well, perhaps Hermione would; but she was quite out of the ordinary.

Professor Snape ignored the fact that Hermione (and, naturally, several of those with magical relatives, including Lyndotia herself) could answer the questions, however. Then he had the nerve to dock a point from Gryffindor because Harry couldn't answer them. Lyndotia's fists were clenched beneath the table in rage. She had to bite back a mad urge to stand up and announce that she and several others could have answered the questions easily, and to ask why he hadn't offered the questions to anyone else.

Then he set them about making a boil-curing potion. "Oh, this one's easy," Lyndotia said to Sam, sounding relieved. "It's one of the first ones Mum taught me to make."

"Your mother taught you to make potions?" Draco asked from the next cauldron, looking impressed.

"Mm-hmm. She wanted me to have a head start at Hogwarts. She taught me about potions and history and all kinds of magical creatures. She's trying to teach my sister now, but Reneey doesn't like history much."

"Do you?"

"Oh, yes!" Lyndotia said enthusiastically. "I _love_ to read, and history is really interesting."

Draco looked amused, and Lyndotia was about to ask him what was so funny when Professor Snape called their attention to the blackboard, where the directions for the potion had been written. Immediately, Lyndotia forgot about everything else and began working with Sam on their potion.

"Oh, I'm horrible at this!" Sam said woefully after a few minutes. "Why don't you just do it? You're actually good at it."

"Well, we're both supposed to," Lyndotia said, but she took over just the same. She wasn't going to let Sam go down in the very first Potions class. Anyway, Lyndotia really wanted to prove that she could make a proper potion.

The next thing she knew, there was a loud hissing noise and fumes were filling the entire dungeon. The potion was spreading faster than water, and Lyndotia and Sam, who were closest to the other Gryffindors, were directly in its path. Sam shrieked but stood, petrified. Lyndotia scrambled onto the wooden stool which they were supposed to sit on while lighting the fire, pulling Sam up with her.

"Ouch," Sam complained. "I think it got my ankle --"

"Get off my foot!" Lyndotia hissed.

"It hurts --"

"Yeah, it sure does -- you're standing on my foot!"

"Oh, sorry --"

"Be careful, you'll overbalance and we'll fall!"

"Fancy meeting you up here," Draco joked. He and his partner, a dark-skinned boy with slanted eyes, had taken refuge on their wooden stool, as well.

Professor Snape restored order by vanishing the spilled potion and shouting at the boy who had melted the cauldron as the rest of the class tentatively stepped down off their stools. At the moment, even Lyndotia didn't even feel like defending whoever it was -- until she saw that it was Hannah's friend, Neville. Neville was cowering from fear of Snape as boils popped up all over his face. A wave of sympathy crashed over Lyndotia, but then Draco smirked and anger overwhelmed even that.

"What's so funny!?" she hissed at him, green eyes flashing dangerously.

"Nothing," Draco said quickly, realizing that he had just made a mistake. "It's just strange to see Professor Snape angry at someone who isn't Harry Potter."

"And that's funny?"

"Funny as in strange, yes."

"Then why were you smirking?"

"I don't know. I just don't get how you can melt a cauldron like that."

"Very easily," Lyndotia hissed. "Want me to show you?"

For some strange reason which was all his own, Draco actually grinned at that. However, Lyndotia was distracted from her anger at him by Professor Snape taking another point from Gryffindor.

"That's not even fair!" she whispered angrily to Sam. "Harry didn't do anything!"

Sam just shrugged and murmured in a distracted sort of way, "I told you he can get nasty..."

"What's the matter?" Lyndotia asked, concerned.

"I told you -- I got splashed on the ankle by that potion -- I have three or four boils there now."

"Can you hold out till we finish this potion? It'll work just fine, and that's what it's for."

"All right..."

Lyndotia spoke to no one for the rest of the Potions class, even though Draco kept trying to catch her eye. She wasn't really meaning to ignore anyone, even him; she was just concentrating extra hard on her potion. It had to be perfect, or else Sam would have to go to the hospital wing for a boil cure potion.

"All right, done!" she said at last, ten minutes before the bell would ring. She pulled a crystal phial from inside her robes and poured a carefully measured dose into it. "Here," she told Sam. "Drink."

Sam wrinkled up her nose at the concoction and asked, "You sure you did it properly?"

"Come on, do you have no faith in me?"

"All right, all right..." She downed the potion in one gulp. There was a moment's pause, and then... "Hey! They're gone!"

"Told you so," Lyndotia said, grinning.


	7. Confessions of a Gryffindor

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Wheee... Lyn finally tells Sam about Voldy, yay! This should be interesting. At least, I hope you all think so. :P

Thanks to **firequeenAzula**, **Gaara6**, **Reneey Umbra**, **Narcissa Moonlight**, and **Ember Riddle** for reviewing!

Aaand, chapter seven!

* * *

_Dear Mum,_

_I'm having a great time at Hogwarts! Did Reneey tell you that I made Gryffindor? I expect she went yelling it to the whole neighborhood and you had to Obliviate some Muggles. I think she was a trifle upset. To tell you the truth, I'm really happy about it, though. I thought that because of HIM I might end up a Slytherin no matter what. It's like the proof that you can be more than what you inherit, you know?_

_I have four awesome dormmates: Sam Sloane, Hermione Granger, Parvati Patil, and Lavender Brown. Sam is my best friend at Hogwarts, she's a really great person. She's a little like me, because she has parents that she isn't too proud of, either. She's a little quiet, but I think she's coming out of her shell a little. Then again, how could she not, being around a lunatic like me, eh?_

_Hermione is the best student in our year. She's tops in everything, literally. She was he only one in our first Transfiguration class to turn her match into a needle. I got mine to turn silver in class, but it didn't go pointy until I was practicing on it at lunch._

_Patvati doesn't really stress over school, but she's a pretty good student, anyway. She's nice and really outgoing. She's really into fashion and music, especially the Weird Sisters. Oh, and she also has a twin sister! Padma is in Ravenclaw, though._

_Lavender is a lot like Parvati, really. She has no siblings, but her cousin Cara O'Toole is a Gryffindor second year. Lavender doesn't think that's fair, because Cara is only two months older than Lavender._

_I can't really say that I have a single favorite class so far. Potions, Transfiguration, Charms, and Herbology are all really brilliant. I thuoght I would like History of Magic, but that was before I met Professor Binns. He's so BORING! Defense Against the Dark Arts sounds a lot cooler than it is, too. Professor Quirrell is a bit of a joke; he walks around in a huge turban all the time and smells like garlic. There's something really strange about him, I just can't put my finger on it yet._

_Anyway, I'd better write to Reneey now before she kills me. Or curses me. Or anything of the sort, really, I don't much fancy having a lemon for a head or anything like that. Write back soon!  
_

_Love,_

_Lyndotia_

_Dear Reneey,_

_I know, I know; you don't think I should be in Gryffindor. Well, I can't help it. The Sorting Hat put me in Gryffindor, and I'm proud to be here. So there._

_Lucius Malfoy? Where did you meet him? I know his son, Draco; he's in my year, in Slytherin. We're in the same Potions class._

_Potions is a lot of fun, by the way. Hannah's friend Neville managed to melt a cauldron in the middle of class, though. He seems to be a bit of a klutz, but he's really nice._

_Anyway, when Neville melted that cauldron, his potion got all over the place. Do you know what a Boil Cure Potion does if you put the porcupine quills in before taking it off the fire? It explodes, and if it hits you, it GIVES you boils. Ironic, huh?_

_So then my friend Sam -- and NO, Sam is NOT a guy -- got splashed on the ankle. Since we were already making Boil Cure Potions, though, I just finished mine early and fixed her up. She isn't very good at Potions, but she's awesome at Charms._

_Ooh, and guess what? On Thursday, we start flying lessons! I absolutely LOVE flying, and guess what else? We'll be learning with Slytherin! I want to smoke Draco at flying for being such a pill in Potions. Maybe Sam can fly well, and we can both beat him. That would be brilliant._

_Well, I have a two foot essay on goblin rebellions to write for History of Magic, so I"ll go do that now. Write me back!_

_Love,_

_Lynni_

"Are you _always_ gonna send so many letters home?" Sam asked in an amused sort of way as she accompanied Lyndotia up the stairs to the Owlery.

"Probably, as long as Reneey is still at home. She'll kill me if I don't." Lyndotia paused as she tied the letter to her mother to Sharein's leg and put Reneey's letter in the owl's beak.

"So, what about you?" she asked a moment later. "Why don't you write home?"

Sam's face fell at that. "Well," she said quietly, "the truth is that my parents.. well, they probably haven't even noticed that I'm gone yet. I never really spend that much time with them at home."

"I'm sorry," Lyndotia said softly, and she did look very sorry indeed. "At least my sister's mother is there for me."

"You know, you never did tell me about _your_ parents, Lyn."

"Oh.. yeah..."

Lyndotia looked around, making sure that there was no one in or near the Owlery. At last, she dragged Sam to the center of the room and fixed her with a penetrating stare.

"You have to promise me that you won't tell _anyone_ about this, Sam."

"Of course I won't. I promise."

Lyndotia nodded and ran her tongue over her suddenly dry lips. This was harder han she had thought it would be.

"Okay, well.. I'm sure you know about Vol -- I mean, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named."

"Of course."

"Well.. he's my father."

Sam blinked, seemingly at a loss for words. Then suddenly she threw her head back and laughed. "Oh, wow, that was good," she choked out at last. "Your dad is You-Know-Who! And my mum is the Minister of Magic!"

Lyndotia seemed to miss the joke. At least, that's what one would imply from the frown on her face. "Sam, I'm serious."

There was a long silence, during which Sam's face changed to a look of utter disbelief. At last, she said slowly, "You're not joking."

"No, I'm not. My father is Lord Voldemort."

Sam gasped and flinched at the same time, and Lyndotia resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "You -- you said his _name_!"

"So does Mum. She says that she has every right after everything he put her through. And if she does, then I definitely do."

Sam shook her head. "And I thought my mother was bad!"

"At least she's not a maniacal mass murderer."

"True. So, what about your mother?"

There was a sound of falling snow from the doorway, and a snowy owl swooped inside. It looked vaguely familiar, but Lyndotia ignored it and bit her lip. "My mother," she said slowly. "Well.. her name was Letaira Elumo.. she came from America.. worked in the Ministry of Magic..."

Sam looked confused. "She worked in the Ministry of Magic.. but she had You-Know-Who's child?"

Now it was Lyndotia's turn to look confused. "Have you -- have you never heard of the Imperius Curse?"

"The whatamus curse?"

Lyndotia sighed. "It's one of the three Unforgivable Curses. The Imperius Curse allows the caster to completely control the person it is cast on."

"That sounds _horrible_!"

"It is. That's why it's unforgivable."

"So You-Know-Who used this Imperius Curse on your mother?"

"Yes."

"What happened to her?"

Lyndotia fell silent. Half of her wanted to tell Sam about what happened, but half wanted to take the secret with her to the grave.

"Lyn?"

Lyndotia closed her eyes and swallowed hard. "She..." Then she sighed, opened her eyes, and said, "My father didn't use just the Imperius Curse on her. There are two other Unforgivables: the Cruciatus Curse.. and the _Avada Kedavra_. The Cruciatus Curse is the Torture Curse. _Avada Kedavra_.. is the Killing Curse. My mother was the victim of all three."

"Oh, Lyn!"

"Her mother was a Muggleborn, you see, and her father was a Squib. Voldemort didn't know that when he first Imperiused her. When he found out.. he called her a Mudblood, said she was unworthy to be the mother of his child."

"So _that's_ how you know Draco Malfoy!"

"Yes. I was sent to live with the Malfoys until Voldemort found Mum. Then I went to live with her, but before Reneey was born, Voldemort ran afoul of Harry Potter."

"I'm so sorry, Lyn!"

"It's not your fault. It's _his_."

"Lyn, how many people nkow about this?"

"As of now? Me, Mum, Dumbledore.. and you."

"Wow. That's.. a pretty exclusive group, Lyn."

"Well, actually, I guess a few Death Eaters know who I am, as well. I doubt Voldemort told them about my mother, though. Wouldn't want to admit that his heir had a _Mudblood_ for a mother, I suppose."

"That's _horrible_."

"_He's_ horrible." Lyndotia shook her head. "You can't know what it's like, just reading from books. Words on paper can't tell you what it's like to have someone you love murdered because she wasn't from a _pureblood_ line. They can't express the horror that wells up inside you when you dream about the Dark Mark hovering over a house, or about a deathly white face with scarlet eyes."

Sam looked positively horrified, her eyes so wide that they seemed ready to fall out of their sockets. "I.. I'm glad I wasn't in the wizarding world, then."

"You would have been first in line to get killed, you know," Lyndotia said, shaking her head. "A Mudblood, and a halfbreed. You see what kind of monsters they are? The people who put stock in this pureblood nonsense?"

Sam nodded, seeming slightly less frightened but no more comforted.

"That's why I've made up my mind," Lyndotia said suddenly. "Dumbledore says that Voldemort's not gone. That he'll come back. I'm not going to go along with him and put up with all of it." An image of Reneey flashed before her eyes, and she tried not to imagine what would happen if Reneey chose the Dark side and she wound up fighting her own sister. Lyndotia knew that if she made that choice and it came to that, there was no turning back in the middle of battle. She wouldn't let her baby sister turn into that, even if she had to use force to stop her. Lyndotia's eyes misted over as she added, "No matter what."

"It'll be hard, won't it?"

"Not really. He may be my father by genetics.. but to me, he's a monster."

"I know what you mean."

Lyndotia shook her head. "No.. no, you don't."

"Lyn?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"For what!?"

"For trusting me." Sam laughed and added, "And for making me feel a whole lot better about _my_ family."


	8. To Fly or Not To Fly

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Muahaha, flying lessons! XD Definitely an interesting day for Gryffindor House, on the whole...

Thanks to **firequeenAzula**, **Gaara6**, **Reneey Umbra**, **Narcissa Moonlight**, **Ember Riddle**, and **xxxRickmaniac87xxx** for reviewing!

Now for chapter eight (finally). :P

**Chapter Eight -- To Fly or Not To Fly**

By Thursday, Lyndotia's anger toward Draco had all but abated. She was even beginning to feel sorry for the embarrassment that he was about to endure, because there was no way that she was going to back down. Sam, however, was nowhere near so confident.

"I don't know _how_ to fly, Lyn," she objected as the Gryffindors trudged out onto the grounds.

"That's the point of _lessons_, isn't it?" Lyn reminded her. "Just ask Hermione, she'll tell you loads of stuff from books that you'll never remember while you're actually on a broom."

"That's mean," Sam said with a frown.

"Not really. Hermione doesn't get it; you can't learn to fly from a book. It just isn't possible."

"Then why do they _write_ books on it, I wonder?" Hermione asked scathingly from somewhere to the left.

"For people who are worried about learning to fly, to make them feel better," Lyn said earnestly. "But it _doesn't help_! I'm telling you, you just have to learn in the air!"

"It's the only way to fly!" Sam yelled suddenly, before turning beet red upon realizing that everyone had heard her.

Lyndotia burst out laughing, and even Hermione had to smile. Parvati and Lavender, however, just stared. Lyndotia grinned at Sam and Hermione and muttered, "They're purebloods." They suddenly understood, and Lyn murmured something to Parvati and Lavender that went along the lines of, "I'll explain it later." They nodded, but didn't have time to say much else because, just then, Draco Malfoy appeared.

"I wanted to apologize for being a git in Potions," he said quietly.

"You're forgiven," Lyndotia said. Then, with laughter in her eyes, she added, "But that doesn't mean I'll go easy on you."

She wasn't sure, but she thought that Draco actually smiled as he said, "I wouldn't hear of it."

The next thing they knew, Madam Hooch appeared and began barking orders. As the class cried "Up!" with one voice, Lyndotia's broom leapt up into her hand immediately. She noticed that Draco's did, too, but Sam's and Hermione's only rolled over on the ground.

"Maybe if you tell it to roll over, it'll jump," Lyndotia joked.

"Oh, be quiet," Sam said with a slight smile. "Up!"

This time, Sam's broomstick swung out wildly and whacked the Slytherin girl next to her in the shins.

"Watch it, Gryffindork!" the girl hissed.

"Watch it yourself, Slythewimp," Lyndotia said darkly, glaring at the girl.

"Do you know who you're talking to?" the girl demanded.

"No," Lyndotia admitted, "but I can guaratee that you don't, either, honey."

The girl was just going to retort when Madam Hooch's voice rang out again, this time telling them how to mount their brooms. Lyndotia had to fight the desire to roll her eyes. Tasha Umbra had played for Russia, so Lyndotia and Reneey knew how to fly by the time they knew how to walk.

Madam Hooch was definitely starting with the basics, because next she swept through the ranks of Slytherins and Gryffindors and corrected their grips. She nodded approvingly at Hermione's and Lyndotia's, and as she went on to Sam, Hermione hissed, "I thought you said you couldn't learn it from books!"

"I said you couldn't learn to _fly_ from books," Lyndotia corrected her. "Your feet are still on the ground, so you're not flying yet, are you?"

Hermione frowned, but before she could retort, someone said loudly, "_Excuse_ me!?"

"I said your grip is wrong, boy! Your hands should be closer together, more like this."

"My father taught me to fly years ago!" Draco objected furiously. "This is how he taught me!"

"Then your father taught you wrong and you've been flying wrong for years," Madam Hooch said irritibly. "Now do as I say, boy!"

Draco agreed grudgingly, but Lyndotia noticed taht he shifted his grip back as soon as Madam Hooch's attention was diverted.

Finally it seemed like they were going to get into the air at last -- but there was one thing Madam Hooch hadn't taken into account.

"Neville!" Lyndotia gasped. For there he was, before Madam Hooch even gave her signal, rising steadily into the air on his broomstick. Madam Hooch yelled something, and the class held its collective breath; then Neville fell with a thud, and Sam screamed. Madam Hooch hurried over and quickly diagnosed a broken wrist before warning them all against flying and heading off toward the castle with Neville.

Suddenly Draco started laughing. Lyndotia stared until he said loudly, "Did you see his face, the great lump?"

Lyndotia was suddenly so angry that she missed much of what was said next. However, she did notice when Draco took off into the air clutching Neville's Remembrall. Her fists were clenched so tightly that her fingernails were in danger of digging blood out of her palms, and she was so glad to see someone go after him that she yelled, "Knock him out of the sky!"

Lyndotia admired Harry's restraint. If she had gone after Draco, she would have knocked him out of the air and begun beating him over the head with his broomstick by now.

Then Draco threw the Remembrall into the air and zoomed back down to the ground. Harry caught it in a spectacular dive, but then Professor McGonagall appeared out of nowhere and, despite many protests from the Gryffindors, led him off toward the castle. As soon as she was out of sight, Lyndotia rounded on Draco with fire in her green eyes.

"What do you think you were doing!?" she demanded.

"Well, I --"

"It doesn't even matter," Lyndotia went on. "You didn't think, because you don't _care_, Draco, about anything except your sorry self!"

"Lyn," Sam begged, looking uncomfortable. "You're causing a scene!"

"I don't care!" Lyndotia raged. "That was a horrible thing to do!"

A boy who was built like a brick wall trundled slowly forward to stand beside Draco, but Lyndotia was so angry that she didn't even recognize him. "You'll want to back off, girly," he said ni a low grunt.

Lyndotia's wand was pointing between his eyes before he realized that she had moved. "_You'll_ want to back off, you square-headed freak, before I give you three extra eyes to watch me wipe the floor with those bristles you call hair!"

The boy looked taken aback, but before he really had a chance to react, Draco said quickly, "Listen to the lady, Goyle."

Goyle grunted and backed off, but Lyndotia looked as furious as ever -- and she now had her wand pointed at Draco, instead.

"How could you do that, Draco?" she asked in a quiet but lethal voice.

"I didn't mean to get him in trouble --"

"Of course you did! What, were you afraid he'd be a better flier? You going to try something like that with me if I'm better on a broom than you?"

Draco looked insulted. "I would never!"

"Unless I got in your way, you mean," Lyndotia went on furiously. "If you thought getting your best friend expelled would benefit you, Draco, you would do it!"

Draco stared at her, stunned, and Lyndotia nodded vindictively. There was a note of fierce triumph in her voice as she said coldly, "I thought so. Come on, Sam, let's go stand somewhere where there's room to breathe for Draco's ego."

And, as she walked away, Lyndotia heard the Slytherin girl that Sam's broomstick had hit ask, "Draco, are you okay? Why did you let that girl talk to you like that?"

In the end, when Madam Hooch finally returned, all of the students were behaving normally again. When she asked where Potter had gone, that same Slytherin girl told her jeeringly. Madam Hooch just clicked her tongue disapprovingly and continued the lesson.

It turned out that smoking Draco at flying wasn't as much fun as Lyndotia had thought it would be, though that was probably because she now felt more like breaking his nose than showing him up. Even when Madam Hooch exclaimed that Lyndotia was a natural-born flier, she just smiled politely and said thank you. However, she did manage to calm Sam down enough that she was doing fairly well by the end of the lesson. Hermione, however, was made even more nervous by Neville's fall, so that she took coaxing just to get on her broom at all.

Despite the fact that they were purebloods, Lavender and Parvati were really horrible fliers, which Sam took some consolation from. Ron Weasley, another pureblood who was friends with Harry, was a pretty good flier, but by the end of the lesson was no better than Sam. Dean Thomas turned out to be an excellent flier despite being Muggleborn, but Seamus Finnigan wasn't half as good as he thought he was.

Quite unfortunately, Lyndotia thought, Draco was a good flier, too. His burly friends, Crabbe and Goyle, were just about as clumsy on brooms as they were on the ground, and the Slytherin girl who had been hit by Sam's broomstick was terrible at flying, though she blamed this fact on an aching ankle even though the broom had hit her in the shins.

All things considered, Lyndotia was quite glad when they were free to trudge back up to the castle. She had the distinct impression that Draco was trying to catch her eye, but continued to look stubbornly forward and listen to Sam saying how much more fun flying was than she had thought it would be.

However, when they came to the entrance hall and the Slytherins started down the stairs to their dungeon common room, Draco muttered something about the library and followed the Gryffindors up the staircase. Lyndotia was just going to resign herself to going back to talk to him to keep him from following them to Gryffindor tower when someone else beat her to it.

"Where do you reckon you're going, Malfoy?"

"Nowhere that's any of your concern, Weasley," Draco answered coldly. "Now get out of my way."

"What, getting Harry in trouble wasn't enough? Now you want to mess with the rest of us too?"

"Stop being a git, Ron," Lyndotia said with a sigh as she turned back toward the two. "Just because it comes natural to him doesn't mean you have to copy it."

"But he --"

"Just shut up and _go_, Ron! Leave him to me."

Looking angry, Ron walked off with his hands in his pockets, muttering something that sounded oddly like "... as annoying as Hermione..."

"Lyn?" Sam asked tentatively from a few steps up the staircase.

"No, you go on," Lyndotia answered her friend's unspoken question. "Worst case scenario, there'll be one fewer Slytherin at Hogwarts come tomorrow."

Sam smiled faintly and was gone, leaving Lyndotia standing with her arms crossed as she glared at Draco.

"You're a very bad liar, you know," he said at last.

"No, actually, I'm a good liar when I want to be. But I don't make a habit of lying, you see, unlike some people I could name just now."

"I never lied to you!"

"Yes, you did. You said that you were sorry for being a jerk and that you ddin't mean to get Harry in trouble."

"I really _am_ sorry, and I really _didn't_ mean to get him in trouble! I just wanted to prove that he's not great at everything. I guess _that_ worked really well," he added darkly.

Lyndotia rolled her eyes. "Harry's dad was famous for being on the Gryffindor Quidditch team," she said in an exasperated, this-is-obvious tone. "It tends to run in families, you know that. Of course, James Potter was also famous for being a prat, according to Mum, and Harry isn't so far as I know; but it's the point of the thing."

Draco frowned. "Mum? I thought your mother --"

"Died, yes. I call her Mum, but she's not really. She's my half sister's mother."

"And she went to school with James Potter?"

"She was in the same year, in Ravenclaw. She had rather hoped I'd be a Ravenclaw."

"I had rather hoped you'd be a Slytherin."

"Funny, everybody wanted me to be something different, but I'm not sure any of them cared what _I_ want."

"Your real mother, though," Draco said slowly. "What about her?"

"What would she have wanted? I have no idea. She came from America, her school's Houses were quite different. Named for Native American leaders, I believe." She paused, then shook her head and asked, "Draco, what do you want?"

Draco looked taken aback. "Why, I don't want you to be angry with me, of course."

"And you think following me and trying to apologize again is the best way to go about it?"

"Well, yes. So would most people."

Lyndotia was silent for a moment before asking slowly, "Do you know those jokes about Pete and Repeat?"

"Who?"

"Pete and Repeat were sitting on a fence. Pete jumped off. Who was left?"

"Repeat," Draco said slowly.

"I suppose you can see where the joke goes from there. Well, Mum told me that when I was younger. I thought about it for a minute, and then I said, 'Nobody, because Repeat would jump off, too.'" Draco smiled, and Lyndotia asked, "So what does that tell you about me?"

Draco was silent for a moment before suggesting tentatively, "That you're analytical?"

Lyndotia shook her head and said simply, "I don't think like other people." Then she turned and went up the staircase, leaving Draco standing and staring after her.


	9. Midnight Correspondence

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Yeah, I just randomly spent an hour writing this for no apparent reason other than that fact that I'm bored and can't sleep. XD So yeah...

Thanks to **firequeenAzula**, **Gaara6**, **Reneey Umbra**, **Narcissa Moonlight**, **Ember Riddle**, and **xxxRickmaniac87xxx** for reviewing!

* * *

**Chapter Nine -- Midnight Correspondence**

There were red eyes in the darkness, and Lyndotia knew whose they were before the figure stepped into the moonlight. Lord Voldemort stood tall in a long, billowing black robe that rather reminded Lyndotia of Professor Snape's. A sneer curled his deathly pale lips and revealed pointed, yellowed teeth, like a cat's.

"Lyndotia," he whispered in a low hiss. "You are a failure, Lyndotia... a disgrace... a disgrace to the name of Slytherin, a disgrace to the name of wizard..." His eyes glowed, and he raised his wand as he went on, "A disgrace, just like your worthless, Mudblood mother..."

A loud tapping sounded in Lyndotia's ears, and she suddenly sat straight up. She was in her four-poster, hair sticking to her forehead with sweat, but the tapping sound was still there. Confused, she looked around and saw a familiar-looking great horned owl tapping on the window.

For a moment, she blinked at it confusedly; then she stood up and opened the window, letting the owl inside. It landed neatly on her bedside table and offered its leg to her, on which was tied a small piece of parchment.

"What are you doing out so late?" Lyndotia murmured, stroking the owl's feathers for a moment. "You should be hunting with the rest of the owls!"

It turned large orange eyes on her, and then her eyes widened. "Oh, you're Kyle's owl! Why on earth would he be sending you here?"

In response, the owl nipped her finger and again held out its leg. Lyndotia took the parchment, unrolled it, and read:

_Lyndotia,_

_I heard you told off Draco Malfoy in flying lessons today! Way to go! That prat has been strutting around the castle like he owns it for way too long already._

_Sorry if I woke you up, but I just had to tell you that's amazing.. and I had to wait until Christian fell asleep or he would have taken the mickey out of me..._

_Kyle_

Lyndotia stared at the messy writing almost incredulously. She had known that Kyle was a strange boy, but this was just... weird. Why would he send her a letter when he could just as easily have talked to her in Charms the next day?

"Er, thanks," she said to the owl, but it just stood there and stared at her with those round orange eyes. "Er... Am I supposed to answer him?" she asked, and the bird hooted softly.

Lyndotia sighed, rubbed her hands over her face, and quietly crept over to rummage around inside her bag. She found parchment easily enough, but it took a moment to find a pot of ink and an unbroken quill. After a few minutes, she sat down cross-legged on her bed, blinked the blurriness from her green eyes, and dipped the quill in ink.

_Dear Kyle,_

_Of course I told him off. He was trying to get Harry in trouble for no reason at all. But that doesn't mean he's a bad person, he's just way too overconfident._

_Yes, you did, but there's no point worrying over it now. I won't be able to sleep for a while now that I'm up._

_Why would Christian do that, anyway?_

_- Lyn_

Kyle's owl stood patiently while Lyndotia tied the letter to its leg. She then all but collapsed onto her bed as the owl flew out the open window, but rolled over again a minute later. Why was it always so hard for her to sleep again once she was awoken?

Sitting up, she looked around to make sure the open window wasn't bothering anyone. Sam was breathing deep and soft in the next bed, Parvati was twitching slightly in her sleep, and Lavender was wrapped so many times in her bedcovers that Lyndotia didn't see how the girl would ever manage to extricate herself from them -- but Hermione's bed was empty.

At first, Lyndotia thought she was seeing things. Hermione, of all people, was not the type to sneak out at night. And yet, she had come to bed that night, because she had frowned at and berated Parvati for putting off her homework. So she had to have snuck out at some point...

With a rustling of wings, the great horned owl was back, and this time Lyndotia took the parchment as soon as it held it out toward her.

_Lyndotia,_

_So you did get my letter! I was beginning to wonder if Virgil had gotten lost or something._

_Yeah, I guess so. But you can't look at his family and say they're all just too overconfident. Being overconfident doesn't get you to use an Unforgivable Curse on an Auror who has his back turned, trying to help a kid who's been jinxed..._

_I'm sorry again. I didn't mean to keep you up all night, especially with Charms tomorrow. I don't want Flitwick to give you extra work or anything._

_Oh, I don't know. He's just weird that way, is all._

_Hey, I noticed you signed your name Lyn. So does that mean I can call you that? I know Sam does, but she's your best friend and all._

_Kyle_

Lyndotia blinked at the letter for a moment after she had finished reading it. She had forgotten about his father... that was probably why he was so set in disliking Draco. She hadn't thought about signing her name "Lyn," either, because she had gotten so used to it in writing letters to Reneey. Oh, well, it wasn't as if that made much difference...

_Dear Kyle,_

_Yes, I got your letter. Is Virgil your owl, then?_

_No, I suppose not. I'm sorry about your dad, I don't know if I ever said so or not. I guess you were little when he died, too? I wasn't a year old yet when my mother died._

_It's all right. I'm pretty good at Charms, and Sam's awesome, so she can always help if I can't manage something. Anyway, you woke me up from a nightmare, so I'm not really complaining._

_Sam's the same way. I bet she would be laughing into her pillow if she knew I was talking to you right now._

_Well, sure, I guess so. Really the only people who call me Lyndotia are the ones who don't know me, or else are just very formal._

_- Lyn_

Lyndotia paused for a second and then added,

_P.S. - Have you heard anything about anybody going to the hospital wing tonight? One of my roommates is missing, I just wonder if she got sick or something._

Hopefully that wasn't considered being a snitch, Lyndotia thought worriedly as she watched the owl fly out of the window; but she really did wonder if something had happened to Hermione. It wasn't like her at all to sneak out. Maybe she was just in the common room studying. That sounded more like Hermione Granger.

The owl came back quickly this time, even though Kyle's letter wasn't any shorter.

_Lyn,_

_Yes, that's him. I noticed you have an owl, too -- what's its name?_

_I was almost two. I barely remember him at all. I'm sorry about your mom, too._

_Hm, I don't know whether to say I'm sorry you were having a nightmare or I'm glad to help in waking you up! What were you dreaming about, if you don't mind my asking?_

_Ah, she sounds a lot like Christian. Maybe we should try to fix them up sometime._

_I think Lyn fits you better than Lyndotia. It sounds less uptight and more friendly._

_No, I don't think so. Maybe she just snuck out, loads of people do. A lot more than the teachers ever catch, anyway. Christian and I went out twice already and nobody ever caught us._

_Kyle_

Lyndotia couldn't help rolling her eyes at that. Somehow she had known that Kyle would think, and, naturally, he had to add that he had of course done the same thing and pulled it off smoothly. She wasn't sure if he was trying to brag or just to reassure her that it was nothing to worry about. Either way, it was still pretty funny.

_Dear Kyle,_

_Her name's Sharein. Mum got her for me so that I could write back to her and my sister. Reneey's really upset because she didn't get to come to Hogwarts this year._

_Oh, it was just a nightmare, you know... Most of them never make any sense or anything, anyway, you know?_

_I really don't see that. Sam isn't really the type, she's too quiet._

_Well, thanks, I guess. It's just easier to say because it's shorter, is all._

_I guess that's possible. I wouldn't go sneaking around too much, though. Filch isn't very fun to deal with when you make him angry; I already managed that when I tracked mud in on Tuesday._

_- Lyn_

Lyndotia felt like an idiot as she gave the letter back to Virgil. She knew she was bordering on lying about her dream, but she just couldn't tell Kyle what her dream was really about. How was she supposed to explain a dream about the Darkest wizard in living memory?

The next letter was a little shorter.

_Lyn,_

_I have a younger brother, too. His name's Keith, he's a year younger than me and a real pain in the butt._

_I really don't have nightmares. I really don't DREAM, actually._

_Yeah, Christian definitely isn't quiet._

_I don't know, I think it just fits you better. You're not stern and serious enough to be called Lyndotia all the time._

_Oh, I'm not worried. Filch just likes to mess with your head, really the most he can do is give you detention..._

_Kyle_

For some reason, Lyndotia grinned, then. She wrote faster, this time, too, as she answered.

_Dear Kyle,_

_Oh, Rea can be a handful sometimes, but she's great. I'm sure you love your brother, too, even if he can be annoying._

_Consider yourself lucky. I hate my dreams._

_No, definitely not, and neither are you. Sam's getting better, though. At least she isn't so quiet when she talks to me._

_Hey, I can be serious! I just usually can't stay that way for very long, is all..._

Suddenly there was a shuffling sound on the stairs, and Lyn froze for a second, eyes flickering toward the door. Then she hurriedly scribbled,

_Gotta go, roommate's coming back. See you in Charms tomorrow._

_- Lyn_

Lyndotia had just closed the window after Virgil and dove back underneath her bedcovers when the dormitory door creaked open. Through barely cracked eyelids, she saw Hermione open the door, tentatively look around, and creep over to her own bed.

_Well, well,_ Lyndotia thought with a faint smile. _I guess Hermione sneaks out, after all..._


	10. Sam Steps In

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Well, this was a long time coming! I'm still alive and such, just far less active in the fanfiction community than I once was. But I saw Order of the Phoenix on TV the other night, and somehow it got me to thinking about all the stories I'd abandoned… Well, this was the first one I thought of, and then I realized I had all this written and it had never been posted. Rereading it definitely got me in the mood to continue. Haha, let's hope I can still manage to get back into the mindset of an eleven-year-old to keep writing this, huh? ;P

**Chapter Ten - Sam Steps In**

The Great Hall was always a busy place but at the same time it was also hard to hide. Sitting at the table of your own House made you very easy to find, particularly if you were a tall first year whose best friend happened to be half veela. The shiny silver hair was kind of distinctive.

Sam probably thought of this as she sank down low into her seat, wearing her pointed hat for the first time since the Sorting Ceremony. There was really no way it could hide her entire sheet of long hair but Lyndotia had to admire the effort her friend was putting into trying.

"You might as well give it up," Lyndotia said with a sigh as she stabbed the potatoes on her plate as viciously as if they had killed a beloved pet. "There are only so many Gryffindors and all the first years sit together."

"Oh, I wish he would just leave you alone," Sam said, frowning as she took off the hat and laid it beside her plate. "He always glares at me when you won't talk to him like he thinks I'm telling you to do it. Like anybody could tell you what to do and you listen!"

"Maybe he is," Lyndotia said hopefully as Draco caught her gaze upon coming into the Hall then looked down and averted his eyes. She held her breath as he walked down the center aisle then let out a sigh of relief when he sat down at the Slytherin table. "Good, maybe he finally gets it…"

"Why is he so cruel, anyway?" Sam asked with a shudder. "I didn't even do anything and neither did Neville or Harry or anyone else he bothers…"

"He's not really cruel, I don't think," Lyndotia said slowly, giving up the stabbing of the potatoes to trace designs in the mess with the tines of the fork instead. "He's just kind of… confused…"

Sam frowned. "Lyn, why do you defend him? I thought you didn't agree with your dad and –"

"I will never agree with _him_!" Lyndotia snapped a little more harshly than she had meant. Upon catching the shocked look on Sam's face, she then sighed and shook her head. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to yell. But he killed my mother, Sam. He probably would have killed me too once Reneey was born and he had an heir with 'better blood.' He's a monster."

"I'm sorry too," Sam said quietly. She was looking down and Lyn got a guilty feeling as she realized that was probably to hide tears. "I just… I don't know…" She frowned then and glanced up, looking confused. "I thought you fancied Kyle...?"

Lyn blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Well, I mean… you kind of act like… you and Draco…"

"What?! No!" Lyn objected, her cheekbones catching fire as she failed to fight off a blush. "I don't even like him half the time, much less fancy him! And who said I fancied Kyle either?!"

Sam looked skeptical but just shook her head and said, "If you say so…"

Thankfully, Hermione chose that moment to sit down, and Lyn raised an eyebrow at her. "So where were _you_ last night?"

"Whatever do you mean?" Hermione asked, but her face gave her away.

Lyn grinned. "I woke up in the middle of the night and your bed was empty. Then you came sneaking back in about half an hour later."

"I was just studying," Hermione excused, but she was focusing too intently on her breakfast to be entirely believable.

"Oh, come on!" Lyn whispered, nudging Hermione's shoulder. "You're like the least likely person in the world to sneak out, and you won't even tell us what it was for?"

Hermione sighed and looked around to make sure no one else was close enough to hear first. "If you must know, Draco Malfoy challenged Harry Potter to a wizard duel and—"

"He _what_?!" Lyn hissed, and Sam just shot her a look that said plainly, 'I told you so.'

"Oh, it was all a fake," Hermione hissed back. "He told Filch that someone was going to be sneaking out and where, trying to get Harry and Ron in trouble—and me and Neville too, for trying to get them to stay, I might add!"

"What happened?" Sam whispered, her blue eyes wide.

"Well, he chased us all over the castle before… before we got away," Hermione's gaze was suddenly drawn by Harry and Ron approaching the other end of the table, and she stood up abruptly, eyes narrowed angrily. "Excuse me…"

After Hermione was gone, Sam gave Lyn a shrewd look. "Well? Still going to say Malfoy's just misunderstood?"

"No," Lyn growled, pushing her plate away from her after suddenly realizing she was no longer hungry. "Draco Malfoy is a prat and a coward and I'm done making excuses for him."

"Good," Sam said with a nod, but she was looking not at her friend, but over Lyn's shoulder to where Draco had just stopped dead in his tracks. It was clear he had heard Lyn's words, and Sam shot a vindictive smile at him. He just turned on his heel and walked away.

"What are you smiling for?" Lyn asked darkly, looking up just in time to catch Sam's expression.

"Nothing," Sam said, picking up her fork and cutting into a pancake. "Just glad you're not letting pretty boy convince you he's something he's not."


	11. With Fear and Trembling

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

**Chapter Eleven - With Fear and Trembling**

More than two weeks later, Draco was still completely ignoring Lyn. She started to feel guilty after the fourth potions class where he wouldn't so much as look at her, even when Professor Snape assigned them to cauldrons right next to each other. Had she really upset him that much just by saying she wouldn't accept his apology?

Sam sighed heavily as they walked into the Great Hall for the Halloween feast, and Lyndotia seemed completely unfazed by all the decorations. "Come on, Lyn—don't let Malfoy get to you. So what if he asked Snape to work on the other side of the room?"

"He's not getting to me," Lyn muttered, sitting down at the Gryffindor table and looking up at the enchanted ceiling. It always made the sky look so beautiful. "I just feel kind of bad. Maybe I hurt his feelings."

Sam looked away, and her voice sounded thoroughly unconvinced as she said, "Draco Malfoy doesn't have feelings to hurt."

"I'll second that," said another voice, and a second later Kyle Moon sat down on the other side of the table, grinning. "Got room for a couple more?"

"Let's hope so, cuz I'm starving and I don't think I can make it all the way to our table," Christian said with a smirk as he joined his friend.

Sam smiled softly, but let her hair fall down from behind her ears so that half her face hid behind the silvery sheet. Christian seemed amused by her shyness. "We don't bite," he said in a surprisingly gentle voice. Then he smirked again. "Well, unless you're a pumpkin pie. I've been trying to convince the house-elves to make some all week."

Lyn chuckled as the food appeared on the table, including several large pumpkin pies. "Looks like they finally caved."

"Yes! It's my lucky day," Christian said as he grabbed a slice.

Kyle smiled too, looking over at Lyn. "Mine too."

Lyn was just about to ask what he meant by that when the doors to the Great Hall were thrown open, and Professor Quirrell arrived, screaming about a troll. Half the hall was on its feet immediately, including Sam, who had turned even paler than usual. It took a moment for Lyn to realize that one of the screams piercing the hall had come from her best friend.

Then Dumbledore suddenly instilled silence, giving out emergency instructions. Ron's older brother leapt up and started bellowing directions to the first years, but Sam still stood frozen.

"Sam? Sam, come on!" Lyn urged, grabbing her friend's hand and tugging. But there was no reason in her friend's eyes, just a fear strong enough to petrify her, and Lyn couldn't understand it. Desperately, she reached for the arm of the next person down at the table. She remembered that his name was Dean Thomas and he was in their year, but she had never spoken to him before. "She's not moving—help me, please!"

"I can help," Kyle offered quickly, but Christian shook his head.

"Travers will kill us if we don't get back to our common room. Come on, we have to go."

Dean looked confused by Lyn's sudden request, but took Sam's other arm and helped her drag the silver-haired girl toward the staircase. "What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know," Lyn said, trying to force back the panic. "Quirrell said the word troll and she completely flipped out."

"Maybe she needs the hospital wing," Dean said uncertainly.

Lyn shot him a look. "Do you really want to turn around and go back the other direction right now?"

Dean nodded grimly. "Point taken."

It was then that the two people they had been walking right behind took a sudden turn away from the stairwell to the common room. Dean and Lyn both looked at each other at the same time, surprise in both pairs of eyes, but he spoke first.

"Did they just…?"

"That was Harry!" Lyn said, looking again to stare after the two retreating backs. "And Ron, I think!" She looked over at Dean again, and then she made her decision. "Can you get Sam upstairs by yourself?"

"Well, yeah, but—"

Lyn released Sam's arm, and Dean quickly wrapped an arm around her shoulders to keep her from collapsing. "What are you thinking?!" he hissed.

"I have to make sure they're okay," she said, turning around and breaking into a run.

"Wait—you can't!" Dean objected, but she knew he couldn't stop her while supporting Sam's nearly dead weight.

Lyn melded into the crowd that Harry and Ron had run off into, and was surprised to find herself facing Hannah Abbott.

"Lyn! What are you doing here?!"

"Hannah," Lyn said in surprise, too shocked to come up with an excuse. "Uh… this isn't Gryffindor, is it?" She looked around quickly, as if unsure how she got here. "I must have followed the wrong prefect…"

"I can ask Sarai to escort you after we get to our common room," Hannah offered.

"Uh—no, I think I see my group—right there," Lyn said quickly, pointing at a random couple of stragglers over her friend's shoulder. "Thanks anyway!"

She darted away before Hannah could object, hiding in the shadow of a suit of armor until the rest of the Hufflepuffs passed. It seemed to take forever, and she bit back a thought her mother would have washed her mouth out for saying aloud. Now she couldn't see where Harry and Ron had gone… but they were headed toward that next set of stairs… Lyn had barely started up the first step when she heard a voice and hurriedly ducked underneath the staircase to hide.

"He beat us there, my lord," said the voice, and Lyn's brow creased. That speaker sounded so familiar. Then a second voice spoke, and all other thought was driven from her mind.

"Did he ssseee usss?"

Lyn suddenly went just as still as Sam had in the Great Hall earlier. She definitely hadn't heard that voice before, but the venom it bore made her blood run cold. Never before had she found herself paralyzed by fear until she heard those four words. Every cell in her body was screaming: _Danger. Pain. Death._ Whoever or whatever it was speaking, Lyn knew she would not be able to so much as move until they were far, far away.

"I don't know, my lord. We kept to the shadows, and he was busy dealing with that monster mutt. There's a good chance…"

"We lossst our chance."

"Another will come."

"I am not known for my patience."

The first speaker's voice trembled as he answered. Strangely, that somehow made his voice seem more familiar. "I am so sorry, my lord."

"Sssilence!" The horrifying voice paused for a moment, then sounded suddenly thoughtful. "There isss one other task you could do…"

"Anything, my lord!"

"I need you to find…"

Whatever that terrifying voice was going to say, it was cut off when a sudden resounding crash boomed through the castle. Just when silence had fallen, another, louder report sounded, seeming to come from the same source as the first.

"That sounds like…"

The speaker took off in a run, but it sounded like only one pair of feet. Lyn remained motionless, hardly daring to breathe. Was the other wizard still here? Had it been the one with the terrible voice who had left, or was he still lurking somewhere in the darkness?

There were a few more loud crashes, and then all fell into complete, blissful silence. Lyn swallowed hard and dared to peek her head out from behind the staircase. Surely if someone was still here, she could have heard him by now. But she still broke into a frenzied run, and did not stop until she was at the portrait of the fat lady. The woman didn't even have time to ask what Lyn was doing out there before she shouted the password, and no one in the common room could speak quickly enough to ask her, either. She didn't stop running until she had leapt into her bed and sealed herself away under the covers, still shaking.


	12. Into the Darkness

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

**Chapter Twelve - Into the Darkness**

_My dear Lyn,_

_I am so glad to hear that Hogwarts is treating you well! I'm very proud of you for making your own path there. Do you finally believe your crazy old mum who kept telling you that you would be only what you decided for yourself?_

_Reneey was very confused when she got your letter, but I was very pleased for you. Rest assured, she kept her objections quiet enough that the neighbors never caught wind—not that they would know what was being said if they did._

_She won't be able to write you yet, though. She burned her hand trying to cook, and she can't hold a quill. But she did want to tell you that she is disappointed your friend Sam isn't a boy, but that she has high hopes for Draco Malfoy. She really took to his father when he ran into us as we were leaving the platform after the train left._

_All that being said, I want you to be careful around that boy. I know you don't remember staying with his family, and I certainly don't either, but the fact that your father entrusted you to them should be a caution of its own. The last thing I want is to sound like a nagging old woman, but I never want to see anything bad happen to you. You are my daughter, Lyndotia, and I love you always, whatever path you take._

_Much love from home,_

_Mum_

Lyn swallowed hard and folded the letter neatly on the table. This was the first time Natasha Umbra had written in two months, but somehow the pride and concern in the letter made that okay. Lyn had been feeling homesick, but now that she knew why Reneey hadn't been writing, it made her feel a little better. Only a little, though. That voice she had heard in the corridor the night before had haunted her dreams, but she still hadn't told anyone about it, mainly because Sam was still in the hospital wing. Professor McGonagall had taken her there after the troll had been cleared out, and she hadn't come back yet. Lyn was tempted to try to get into hospital to see her, but she didn't think the healer would oblige. Still, she wasn't looking forward to the prospect of going to potions alone.

Lyn arrived in the dungeon classroom just a few seconds before she would have been late, putting her bag down quietly by the cauldron she usually shared with Sam. She completely zoned out until she heard her name being called, and then jumped at the sound before confirming for roll that she was present. When Snape called Sam's name, Lyn raised her hand and quietly told him where she was, then resumed staring down at her palms while Snape introduced the lesson.

"Hey," a voice said quietly, and Lyn looked up slowly to see Draco looking over at her with a crease between his eyebrows. She hadn't even noticed that he had taken back his old seat next to her. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," Lyn lied, looking back down at her fingertips as if studying them could drive the worries from her mind.

She thought he had gone back to listening to Snape, but then his hand reached over to touch hers. Surprised, she looked up again, and was more than a little taken aback to see the genuine concern in his eyes.

"Lyn, you're not fine. You're paler than parchment. You look… scared."

Lyn swallowed hard and pulled her hand back to tuck her hair behind her ear. "I said I'm fine."

"And you lied," Draco persisted, his frown deepening. "What is it? That veela girl?"

"I haven't seen Sam since last night," Lyn said quietly, not looking at him as she spoke. "When Quirrell came in and said there was a troll, she went completely catatonic. Dean and I almost had to carry her up to the common room. They took her to the hospital wing once the troll was taken care of."

"Dean Thomas?" Draco repeated, raising an eyebrow and glancing sharply at where Dean sat with Seamus, a few feet away. His gaze softened when he looked back to Lyn. "They wouldn't let you—"

"Is there something more interesting than the proper applications of aconite, Mr. Malfoy?" Snape's voice cut in. Draco seemed to be shocked at being called out in this class, and Lyn couldn't blame him—Snape nearly always ignored anything he did against the rules. Maybe it was because he was choosing to speak to a Gryffindor.

"No, professor," Draco said in what could almost have passed for a tone of respect.

"Then perhaps you should return your attention to your own cauldron."

"Actually, sir, since Lyn's partner is in hospital, Blaise and I thought she could work with us."

His partner, who Lyn took to be Blaise, blinked in surprise as if to say he had been thinking no such thing. Snape merely smiled rather like a viper and looked down at Lyn. "Was Miss Sloane really such a crucial part of this class to you, Elumo? Because as far as I've seen, she has yet to produce a remotely decent brew of even the simplest potion. Can she even boil water alone?"

Lyn's face went from pale to bright red in about two seconds. She decided it was best to keep her mouth shut and not tempt fate.

"I thought so," Snape said softly. "Draco, please do return to your cauldron and worry about your own brew."

"Yes, sir," he said, moving away with a regretful look. He kept his attention on his own work until the end of class, but when Lyn picked up her bag to leave, he caught hold of her sleeve.

"I'm sorry," he said, and he did genuinely sound apologetic this time.

Lyn had to force on even a faint smile. "It's okay. But I need to go check on Sam. I really need someone to talk to."

Draco paused before offering slowly, "You could talk to me."

She chuckled darkly. "You'd think I'm mental. Besides, Snape's about to start telling you to socialize with your own House again." She pulled her sleeve from his grasp. "Thanks, Draco. But I have to go see Sam."


	13. A Chance Encounter

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

**Chapter Thirteen - A Chance Encounter**

Lyn stood in the corridor facing the door to the hospital wing with an expression on her face that looked completely and utterly lost. Madam Pomfrey had just hurriedly closed the door in her face after explaining that she had her hands full with a boy who had blown up managed to anger a house-elf and had been given pointy ears. Oh, and she had mentioned before that that Sam had been transferred to St. Mungo's because her shock seemed to have brought up some suppressed memories.

For a moment, Lyn didn't seem to remember how to breathe. Finally she turned away and walked back down the hall, but she didn't really see where she was going. Everything passed in a blur, but even if she had noticed her surroundings, she wouldn't have known where she was going. Her feet had acquired a life of her own, and so she was surprised when she suddenly stopped and found herself in a window seat facing out over the lake. She didn't remember coming there, but it didn't matter. She sat down, curled her arms around her knees, and tried to forget everything.

"_Lyndotia," a voice hissed, and Lyn looked up to see that the terrifying voice from Halloween night belonged to the single most horrifying person she had ever seen. Lord Voldemort loomed before her, his eyes burning scarlet and seeming to dare her to run. She wanted to scream but it caught in her throat; she knew what came next, what always did._

"_Do not be afraid."_

_Lyn went perfectly still, her gaze flicking in shock and horror back to those crimson eyes. This wasn't what usually happened. The dream had changed._

"_I do not know how you have ssuffered these past ten years, my child. But I have been told you have come to Hogwarts. I am exssceptionally glad Dumbledore did not try to deny you your education in magic, for I am here, as well."_

_Lyn's blood ran cold again. That was the voice she had heard. Voldemort, some kind of spirit Voldemort, was here in the castle. That was why she had heard only one person walk away._

_No, the rational part of her brain argued. This was a nightmare, nothing more. She just had to stay calm._

"_My ssservant should come to sspeak with you ssoon. I am most curiouss to learn how you have fared. I look forward to ssseeing you face to faccce."_

Lyn jerked awake with a gasp, hitting her head on the frame of the window. As the castle walls spun from the sudden return to reality and head trauma, she squinted enough to bring into focus a pair of bright blue eyes. "Mm? Sam?"

A deep chuckle answered her confusion. "I'm afraid not, Miss Elumo."

Lyn blinked again, and then she was quite certain her entire face turned red. "P-Professor Dumbledore!"

"It seems you were having quite the nightmare," Dumbledore observed without answering. "What are you doing up here? Another twenty feet and a secret password, and you would have been in my office."

"Oh. Oh! I'm so sorry, I didn't realize."

"Hm… well, since you're already here, I have been meaning to speak with you."

"O-okay," Lyn agreed, suddenly nervous as she remembered he was the one Natasha had sought out for advice. Was he going to say he had made a mistake in letting her come to school here?

She must have still been thinking along those lines when she sat down in the chair across from Dumbledore's desk, because he took one look at her and smiled encouragingly. "You're not in trouble, Lyndotia."

"Using my full name usually means I'm in trouble," Lyn said with a faint attempt at a smile.

"Oh? What do you prefer?"

"Uh, Lyn."

"Lyn, then," the headmaster said with another heartening smile. "How very good to finally see you again—the last time I met you, you were hiding in Natasha's robes."

Lyn blinked. "I met you before?"

"Natasha brought you with her when she came to ask my advice ten years ago." He smiled faintly. "I do believe she thought seeing how small and vulnerable you were would sway my reaction. It didn't, of course; I would never have given her any other counsel."

Lyn let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "So I'm… not… expelled?"

"Of course not," Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his eyes. "In fact, I've been told by your professors that you particularly excel in herbology and potions."

Lyn's expression turned skeptical. "Professor Snape told you that?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "Perhaps not in so many words. But Professor Snape's… partiality aside, I am still rather curious of how _you_ feel you have acclimated to Hogwarts."

"I love it here," Lyn said honestly, smiling faintly for the first time she since had awoken. "The classes are fun. There are so many nice people."

She paused there as if she was debating saying something else, and Dumbledore was not undiscerning. "Do I sense a 'but'?"

Lyn fidgeted with her hands in her lap for a moment before she looked back up at him. "I wonder if they would be so nice if they knew," she admitted quietly. "The only person who knows who I am is Draco Malfoy, and he's nice enough to me, but… Well, I'm afraid he only _is_ because he knows. And I told my friend Sam part of it, but she's not from a wizard family. She doesn't really understand everything he did, or she might hate me too."

"Who you are is not who your father is," Dumbledore said gently. "Have you considered that it might be _because_ your friend knows who you are that she doesn't judge you for the sins of Lord Voldemort?"

Red tinged Lyn's cheeks, and she looked down at her hands again. "I guess not."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "I thought not. But your friend Sam is the other reason I wanted to speak with you. Poppy told me you went to see her today and were told she was transferred out of the school."

"Yes, sir," Lyn agreed, meeting his gaze again. "Sir, Madam Pomfrey wouldn't tell me anything else. Will she be okay? Why did—"

Dumbledore quieted her with a raised hand. "Samantha will be fine in time. Some repressed memories surfaced during the Halloween feast that her mind has to sort out before she can return to school."

Lyn swallowed hard. "I see. How… long will that take?"

"I cannot say," Dumbledore said sadly. "Her parents have requested no visitors for the time being, but I will let you know immediately if that changes."

"Just… what kind of memory could do something like that? I don't understand."

"I'm afraid only the Sloanes can answer that. For now, I would advise you to focus on your classes and not wander around in strange areas of the castle." He smiled faintly and pulled out a sweets tin from his desk. "Before you go, would you care for a lemon drop?"


	14. Alone

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Don't shoot me for this chapter; it had to be done for a smoother transition into the next, and is intentionally short so as to not overdose everyone on melodrama.

**Chapter Fourteen - Alone**

More than a week had passed, and there was still no word about Sam. For that matter, there had been no more letters from home either, and Lyn was starting to feel alone even in the crowds of students she passed through each day. At first, all the other Gryffindors had stopped her to ask for updates, but now Sam's removal to St. Mungo's had become old news. The only time anyone talked to her anymore was in Herbology, when she worked with Hannah, Susan, and Ernie. They, at least, still seemed concerned; everyone else had moved on to wondering when Fred and George Weasley had managed to put a jinx on the boys' toilets.

Draco hadn't tried to talk to her since Snape had berated him, and in Charms, Kyle and Christian were too busy whispering together under their breaths to speak to anyone else. Strange, Lyn had thought, how she seemed to have no other friends besides Sam in her own house. Her dormmates were more acquaintances than friends, after all—Hermione was always with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, and Parvati and Lavender were continually gossiping about things Lyn wasn't particularly interested in.

Not that she had ever minded any of that before, but it was only fun to laugh at all the rumors if Sam was there to commentate with.

But the strangest thing of all was in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Professor Quirrell kept giving her points for the oddest things, like fetching a spare book from the cabinet or catching a garter snake off the floor. She hadn't mentioned that the reason she had done the last one was because she had understood its pained hissing. Of course no one else in the school was a Parselmouth, but Lyn had been unable to ignore its pleas for warmth, even if she hadn't been able to reassure it in front of the class. They wouldn't have reacted too well if she had started hissing back at it, although she was extremely curious what the little fellow had been doing in the castle as November wore on.

Yes, November… that fact had her even more depressed. Her birthday was coming up soon, and with Sam still away, no one was going to remember it. Of course, her mum would probably send something by post, but Lyn couldn't remember a birthday where she hadn't been mauled by Reneey, singing a heavily accented version of the happy birthday song.

It became especially bad when Lyn missed the Gryffindor Quidditch match because she didn't feel like facing the crowds. She instead spent that day in a girls' lavatory, talking to a miserable ghost named Myrtle who seemed to relish in trying to convince Lyn that it was more trouble than it was worth to try to have living friends, anyway.

At least she had finally convinced herself that dream she had been having when Dumbledore found her had truly been just a dream. After all, there was no way Voldemort could possibly hide out in Hogwarts. It had far too many magical barriers and wards, as the copy of _Hogwarts, A History_ that Hermione kept under her bed had assured her. But no amount of logic could drive away the feeling of dread that was building in the pit of Lyn's stomach. Something was coming; she just didn't know what.


	15. November 23

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: I take the lack of reviews on the past 5 chapters to mean that no one any longer holds any interest in this fic, which I can't say is completely unexpected after the huge chunk of time I've spent away from the world of fanfiction. I guess I won't stress myself about updates on it too much right now unless I really just feel like writing it. I ought to dedicate a bigger chunk of my time to finishing chapter 13 of Sons of Reproach, anyway.

**Chapter Fifteen - November 23**

It was Saturday at last, a day of blissful relaxation for all the students who had survived another week of classes. Lyn hadn't felt like going to breakfast that morning, and instead waited up in the Owlery to see if Sharein was there, but the owl was nowhere in sight. Whether she was still out hunting or was carrying back a parcel from home, Lyn couldn't guess, but it certainly didn't ease her loneliness. With a soft sigh, she murmured, "Happy birthday to me…"

"Oh," a voice said, and Lyn turned to see Draco standing at the top of the stairs, looking surprised. "So you're up here."

"I'm just leaving, don't worry," Lyn assured him, tossing the toast she had brought up for Sharein to a tiny owl on her right and moving to walk past him.

"But I was looking for you," Draco objected. "You weren't in the Hall this morning, so I thought you might be sick. Here." He held out a parcel wrapped in silver paper that Lyn hadn't noticed he had been holding. For a second she just stared at it, until he added, "It's for you."

Lyn took the package slowly. "What… Why?"

Draco frowned. "It's your birthday."

Lyn's fingertips traced over the silver wrapping. "How did you know?"

"You lived with us, remember?" Draco asked with a faint smile. "My mother threw you your first birthday party. Not that I was anywhere near old enough to remember it, of course. You're actually older than me, you know."

"I didn't," Lyn admitted. "But my birthday's awkward. I was a little upset when I turned eleven that I didn't get to go to Hogwarts straight away, since it was already two months into term."

"I never thought of that. It must have been annoying. Mine isn't until June, so I only had to wait three months."

"Lucky," Lyn said with a smile. "My sister's is in May, and I'm jealous. There's absolutely nothing to do in November, but you get such nice weather in the summer for parties and things."

Draco chuckled softly—actually chuckled! How strange, but yet oddly comforting. "If you consider boiling in the sun nice weather, I suppose. But aren't you going to open it?"

Lyn looked down at the little box in her hands as if she had forgotten it was there. "You didn't have to get me anything. I don't think anyone else here even remembered."

"Just open it."

Underneath the silver wrapping paper was a black dragonhide box. Curiously, Lyn opened the latch. Inside, nestled in black satin lining, was an amulet on a braided silver chain. A blue stone that looked like real sapphire made up the face of the amulet, and etched onto the stone in silver was some kind of spread-winged bird. The gem was only about the size of a galleon, but the detail on the etching was incredible. The bird's eye flashed the shape of a thunderbolt, and it clutched at the wisps of clouds with its talons.

"It's beautiful," was all she could think to say.

"I didn't actually _get_ it for you," Draco admitted, and he seemed to be watching her closely as he spoke. "It was your mother's—the pendant, at least. It must have broken when she…" He trailed off at the look in her eyes, and then caught up his thread of thought again. "When you brought it to the manor, the chain was broken, so Mother put it away until you were older. I found it a couple of years ago, and I sent back for it in the post when Mother told me your birthday. The chain was still broken, so I made a new one from unicorn hair—it's almost unbreakable, so… it shouldn't break again," he finished a little awkwardly.

"It's… that's… amazing," Lyn breathed, her thumb tracing the tiny but intricate gold lines on the stone. She could barely tear her eyes away from it to look up at him. "Draco, this is so—so sweet of you."

A moment after she said it, she expected him to recoil at the use of the word 'sweet,' but surprisingly, his gaze just turned back down to the amulet. "It's her family crest—_your_ family crest, that is. That's a thunderbird, some sort of American cousin to the phoenix that's born of lightning instead of fire. And those are supposed to be words on the clouds, Father said, but they're not even written in English letters, so I have no idea what they are."

Lyn swallowed hard and smiled, trying to keep from crying. "It's so incredible. I never had anything of hers, not even a picture."

There was a moment's pause, and then Draco said quietly, "I'm sorry." And maybe she was imagining it, but Lyn was almost certain he really sounded like he meant it.

"H-hello," a voice stammered from the stairwell, and Lyn jumped in surprise.

"Professor Quirrell," she greeted the turbaned Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.

"Whatever are you doing in the Owlery?" Draco asked, just a shade too abrupt to be considered polite. Quirrell, however, didn't really seem to notice; his eyes didn't move from Lyn.

"I h-had a q-q-question ab-bout your l-last e-essay, L-Lynd-dotia," he managed to get out.

Lyn, for her part, merely looked confused. "But it's Saturday. And how did you know I would be here?"

"L-lucky ch-chance," Quirrell explained with one of his odd laughs that made him sound on the verge of breaking into tears.

"Right," Draco said slowly, his gaze moving from the professor to Lyn to the necklace he had just given her that now hung around her neck. "Hey, you haven't eaten yet, right? Meet me at the Slytherin table when you're through?" Catching the look on her face, he added, "Most of my House is back in the common room by now; they don't usually stay very long around the others when they don't have to."

"Alright," she agreed, and he smiled very faintly before he walked off. It was nice to see a real smile from Draco, and besides, who else did she really have to sit with now anyway? He was the only one in the entire school who had even remembered her birthday.

Then again, maybe she was wrong, because Professor Quirrell chose that precise moment to smile and say quietly, in a voice suddenly as cool and smooth as marble, "I was sent to wish you happy birthday, Lyndotia."

A spike of adrenalin shot through Lyn that she couldn't quite understand. He wasn't stuttering. Why wasn't he stuttering? He always stuttered. Maybe he wasn't Quirrell; maybe he was someone else who had taken Polyjuice potion. She couldn't rationalize any reason anyone else might have to do that, but she couldn't reason away the way her body suddenly tensed as if to run. Yet something even deeper warned her that running, in this instance, was a bad and probably hopeless plan.

"Sent?" she asked, but her own voice was suddenly much less steady than usual; her throat felt as dry as sandpaper. "By who?"

Quirrell glanced behind him to make sure no one was on the stairs and then proceeded forward, toward the center of the Owlery where she stood. She had never noticed how pale his eyes were before, and suddenly staring into the haunting depths of them terrified her in a way she didn't understand—at least, until he said calmly, "By your father."

A tremor ran down her spine, and she gripped a support beam until her knuckles turned white just to keep herself from falling backward. Her father. But he was defeated. He couldn't be sending a messenger to her here, ten years later; that was impossible.

"My father is dead," she whispered, but even her voice betrayed her uncertainty. Search though she might, she could see no lie in Quirrell's fathomless, icily translucent eyes.

A feral hiss echoed throughout the Owlery, emanating from somewhere within Quirrell. The sound, she suddenly realized, was straight from her nightmares. Her hands trembled, and she fought desperately to wake up, because this had to be a dream. That sound always came right before Voldemort appeared in her dreams, like he would never appear in real life.

"It is not wise to slander my master's name in such a way," Quirrell snapped, grabbing her wrist as if expecting she was about to run away. It was pointless; she was fairly certain every muscle in her body had locked, and she might never remember how to move again. "He is the most powerful wizard ever to have lived, and he will never be so weak as to do anything so Muggle as _die_."

Lyn swallowed hard and forced her head to nod jerkily. Quirrell relaxed and released her, seeming to regain his composure. "At dusk, you will enter the Forbidden Forest and follow a blue light to a specific clearing. There, my master will be waiting for you. He is anxious to look upon his eldest child for the first time in a decade."

It was all that Lyn could do to nod again, and Quirrell, his message delivered, whisked away as quickly as he had come. It was only then, when he was out of sight and the adrenalin failed, that Lyn let her legs give way beneath her and ease her to the floor. Her father was alive—and more, he was at Hogwarts. Hogwarts, the safe haven of witches and wizards everywhere; the one place her mother had been convinced Lyn would be safe. The weight of her nightmares crushed down on her, and Lyn was still sitting on the floor and hardly daring to breathe when Sharein returned an hour later.


	16. What Lies in Wait

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Well, chapter 13 of SoR is posted and I've already started chapter 14, but I kind of felt bad leaving this where it is. So here you go, just in case anyone is actually paying attention to this anymore so I don't leave you with an evil cliffhanger while I wander off to write other fics and lose myself brewing potions on Pottermore.

**Chapter Sixteen – What Lies in Wait**

Lyn remembered thinking, when Professor Dumbledore had first mentioned that the forest was off limits to students, that it might be fun to try to sneak around and figure out why. Now though, she didn't have the faintest desire to uncover its secrets, largely because she was now convinced one of them was the harboring of Lord Voldemort.

Some winged creature gave a cry above her head and batted its wings against a tree branch. She pressed her back flat against a tree trunk and raised her wand, magical beam of light searching for the source of the noise but finding nothing. A twig caught in her hair, and she leapt away from the tree with a gasp, images of angry bowtruckles floating through her mind. Silly, she told herself; she wasn't threatening the trees, so even if any of them were wandwood material, their guardians wouldn't be attacking her out of nowhere.

At least, she hoped not.

The shadows of the day were lengthening as dusk turned into twilight, and a chill was creeping in from the coast. Lyn drew her cloak more tightly around herself, suppressing a shudder. She couldn't look weak right now, she had already decided that. Weakness was what got people killed, especially where Voldemort was concerned. She had to convince him she was pleased to see him, that she was on his side, or she would end up just like…

Lyn swallowed hard and shoved that memory out of her mind. She couldn't think about her mother now. She refused to consider that this dark, damp forest and a pair of glowing crimson eyes could be the last things she would ever see.

A branch broke off to her right, and every muscle in Lyn's body tensed. Her green eyes darted up and down, trying desperately to cut through the shadows to the source of the sound. "Hello?" she called, making sure not to speak too loudly and attract anything dangerous. But then, who was she kidding? She was going to meet the most dangerous being in these woods.

"Lyn?" a voice answered, and suddenly not one but two shapes appeared out of the gloom. Lyn's heart leapt, and then instantly dropped like a stone. Kyle and Christian were in the Forbidden Forest. And so, somewhere not too far ahead, was Lord Voldemort.

"Ahh, we've got a right little rule-breaker on our hands!" Christian said, grinning mischievously. "How did you sneak past Hagrid?"

"I didn't even see him," Lyn said slowly, a horrible thought entering her brain that perhaps Voldemort had killed the kind caretaker so that he couldn't stop her from making their meeting.

"You probably got here right when we did, then," Kyle said with a prideful smirk. "We threw a couple of flobberworms into his cabbages as a diversion."

Lyn felt a little better that hopefully Hagrid was alright, but a panic started to rise in her chest as she realized that she had to get the two Ravenclaws out of here. If they wandered in the wrong direction…

"Isn't it kind of late, though?" she prodded, trying not to look as anxious as she felt. "Filch will be guarding the castle doors before long to try to catch anyone coming in late…"

"Got that covered too," Kyle said proudly, holding up a bag of what looked suspiciously like Dungbombs.

"Besides, you're just as late as us," Christian pointed out. "What plan did you have for getting back in?"

Lyn didn't answer, because she hadn't really had a plan; she hadn't thought ahead that far. In all honesty, she wasn't even one hundred percent convinced she would be walking back out of the Forbidden Forest. But the thought that she could be dragging Kyle and Christian to their deaths with her made the prospect suddenly unbearable, and the overwhelming urge to flee as far and fast as she could struck her.

Christian caught onto her expression first. "Not scared, are you, Lyndi?"

Kyle grinned confidently. "Don't worry; we'll protect you."

"Listen, guys," Lyn urged, her voice dropping to a low whisper. "We really should get out of here."

"But we heard there are centaurs in these woods!" Christian said, his eyes lighting up. "Have you ever met one?"

"No," Lyn began, but Kyle mused over her, "It's been really quiet out here, though. Weird, almost."

"So there's probably something worse than usual out here tonight," Lyn emphasized, taking hold of Christian's sleeve and trying to pull him back toward the castle. "So let's just go back, and maybe next week—"

A red light burst out of the darkness, interrupting her words and turning them into a cry as the spell, whatever it was, hit Christian square in the chest. His eyes went blank and he fell face-first on to the mossy ground.

"Christian!" Kyle bellowed, whipping his wand around toward the source of the light, but ropes sprang out of nowhere and bound him from shoulder to waist. The wand dropped uselessly to the ground as he struggled wildly against his bonds.

Lyn stood frozen in shock and fear as a cloaked figure stepped slowly out of the darkness. Those slitted crimson eyes that haunted Lyn's nightmares bore down on her, sending a chill down her spine that rooted her in place.

"Y-You-Know-Who!" Kyle gasped, and suddenly his struggles became more violent, his face contorted with rage. "You—how can you be here!? You're dead!"

"Ssstupid boy," hissed the voice she had heard in the corridor that night, and a ton of bricks crashed down on Lyn's chest all at once. Of course, it all made sense now. The horror that voice evoked in her was because it was the voice that had uttered the spell that murdered her mother.

"Then you will be!" Kyle threatened, trying to claw at the ropes so fiercely that he was bloodying his fingernails. "Give me my wand and fight me like a man!"

"You are many yearsss from being a man," Voldemort said, and he sounded almost amused. "Perhaps you never shall be. How foolisssh of you to come here with Lyndotia."

Kyle went very still then, his dark blue eyes going wide and meeting Lyn's uncertainly. "L-Lyn?"

Suddenly she found herself incapable of looking at Kyle, unable to face his eyes pleading with her to say she had no idea what was going on. Instead, she met that crimson gaze from her nightmares and tried desperately to make her voice firmer than the squeak it wanted to come out as. "I-I didn't bring them with me."

"You had your hand on the halfblood boy," Voldemort growled, but Kyle's disbelieving whisper somehow overrode him.

"You're with him," Kyle managed to get out, looking as if he couldn't have been more stunned were he faced with a three-headed dragon instead of a pale-faced Gryffindor girl who looked on the verge of tears. "Everything I told you—I—I _fancied_ you—and you've been in _his_ pocket this whole time!"

"You don't understand, Kyle," Lyn began, but then suddenly the Ravenclaw boy was shouting.

"No, you don't understand! You're the worst kind of traitor, Lyndotia Elumo! You act all sweet and innocent and make people want to protect you, and then you stab them in the back!"

Voldemort hissed something almost inaudible and the wand in his hand gave the slightest flick; then suddenly Kyle was on the ground writhing, his teeth ground against the screams of pain boiling up in his throat.

"No, stop it!" Lyn cried, her feet finally coming unstuck from the ground as she lunged forward. The spell released, and as Kyle fought to catch his breath so did she, not daring to let herself look at him. "You can't kill him out here," she implored, struggling to keep her argument logical and not emotional. "It—it would draw too much suspicion. Dumbledore would recognize the spell and start combing the woods and the castle. Just Obliviate him, leave them here, you can be long gone by the time they wake up—"

"You are as soft as your mother," Voldemort hissed, but the next flick of his wand sent a Stunner straight for Kyle's chest, too. Glancing across both Ravenclaws unconscious on the floor of the forest, he took two steps forward. Lyn couldn't help but notice how odd he was walking, as if his knees didn't bend; then again, maybe she was imagining that in her fright.

"You fear me," Voldemort whispered, his crimson eyes narrowing. "And with good reason. Those robes… You carry the blood of Salazar Slytherin himself. You dare come before me cloaked as one of Godric Gryffindor's brood?"

Lyn had the sudden, morbid thought that at least it would be easy on whoever carved her tombstone, since she would be dying on her birthday.

Fighting back that thought, she swallowed hard. She had her story prepared for this. "I-I thought this House would throw off the most suspicion," she began, but the feral hiss he uttered stopped her before she got any further.

"Do not lie to me, Lyndotia. Tasha has polluted your mind in these years since she removed you from Lucius and Narcissa's care." He eyed her almost appraisingly, and that voice in the back of her head screamed at her to run again. Fat lot of good it would do her now, she thought hopelessly.

"Yet you remain my firstborn, child," Voldemort went on after a moment. "And that is what you are. An extremely bright, talented child, but a child nonetheless. There is hope for you yet, if you make… the proper choices…"

Lyn swallowed hard. She had the distinct thought that, had it been Draco instead of Kyle who had followed her into this part of the woods, an entirely different scenario would have unfolded.

"Yes," Voldemort decided, nodding and looking slightly more pleased. "There is definitely still a chance for you." His wand flicked toward Kyle again, his attention diverted. "Return to the castle before your absence is noted. I will find you when my full power is restored… And I will be most upset, Lyndotia, if I find that sparing the lives of these two has led you down the opposite path."

Nodding jerkily, Lyn took two steps backward, then turned and forced herself to walk a short distance away. Only once she was certain she was out of earshot did she break into a run, never stopping until she was tucked away beneath the covers of her four-poster, shaking uncontrollably and trying to work out what she could do about her father's ultimatum.


	17. Strength in Weakness

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Somebody get me some butter, because I am on a roll! I know, 4 chapters over 2 fanfics in 2 days? This hasn't happened since days of yore… Maybe that unannounced sabbatical was precisely what the doctor ordered!

Also, as I'm sure you'll notice, Draco somehow managed to hijack a portion of this chapter. O.o I'm not quite sure how that happened, though I suspect that he may have just smirked and my brain immediately melted and molded to his will. Damn cocky little pureblood, knowing he can pull it off.

**Chapter Seventeen – Strength in Weakness**

The parcel from home had been waiting on Lyn's bed when she woke up in the morning. How she had ever gotten to sleep, she couldn't say, but her dreams had been full of images of Lord Voldemort appearing in the flesh in Hogwarts, killing and torturing and blasting out of the way whomever he saw fit. She distinctly remembered Kyle and Sam among those numbers, writhing under the Cruciatus Curse as Voldemort laughed. Strangely, she had been trapped in the background not just by the normal paralysis that keeps you from responding in nightmares, but by Draco, who kept holding her back and pleading with her that if she tried to interfere, she would be next.

Lavender and Parvati, for their parts, had tried very hard to be nice to her that morning. Apparently it was just that obvious that she was in such a right state that they took time out of their normal beautification routines to ask if she was alright. Lavender had even offered to do Lyn's makeup, something that she had been quick to reject as she didn't much fancy looking like a raccoon, but that was the most enthusiasm she had shown that morning.

The parcel with her mum's and Reneey's birthday presents—three new release bestsellers Lyn had been dying to read before yesterday, and a hand-charmed comb that would braid her long hair for her while she brushed it—just made her want to cry. It didn't help when she read their letters about how blissfully normal life was at home. Lyn didn't think she would be feeling normal for a very long time.

She walked in a daze toward the Great Hall, not out of hunger, but just because it was what was expected of her. If she had any sense, she knew, she would go to Dumbledore now. Her mum had called him the greatest wizard of all time; surely, if anyone could help her…

But therein lay the crux of the matter, didn't it? No one could help Lyn with this. She was trapped in a situation that had no best possible outcome. Sure, she could go to Dumbledore and tell him what had occurred, but then what? Even if he happened to be willing to believe her, something she really doubted, Quirrell even now sat directly beside the headmaster. He would hear, and he would send word to her father, and he would kill Kyle and Christian and Merlin knew how many others before anyone would even believe her.

"Lyn?"

Looking up, she realized that Draco was standing by the entrance to the Great Hall. He was alone, she noticed, just like the last time he had found her. The closer she drew to him, and the better a look he got at her, the more worried his expression became.

"Lyn, are—are you okay?" he half whispered, grasping her sleeve and pulling her back into the shadows behind the huge doors. His gray eyes bored into hers, as if trying to read her thoughts, and she shuddered. Somehow she was certain that Voldemort's eyes had burned into her exactly the same way, and for exactly the same purpose.

Then she saw them, right over Draco's shoulder. Kyle and Christian were laughing as they came down the stairs from Ravenclaw tower, by some grace alive and whole. Christian didn't notice her, but Kyle glanced briefly in her direction. In that one split second their eyes met, Lyn could see the look of horror cross his face. What it meant she couldn't understand; surely Voldemort would have wiped their minds! But then she realized that meant he would have had complete freedom to write whatever he wished in place of the memory he stole. She couldn't fathom what it might have been, but from the way Kyle shuddered and unconsciously shifted toward the other door, she could only imagine horrible things.

The tears started in her eyes before she realized they were coming. Draco swore under his breath and fitted his hand to her cheek, desperate to get her to calm down and talk to him. "What happened? Is it the ve—Sam?"

Lyn shook her head, making the tears fall in the motion, and Draco took in a long breath, pulling her back further into the shadows of the door so no one could see them. "Then what, Lyn? Did someone do something?" When she didn't respond again, he ground his next words out through clenched teeth: "I swear, if someone hurt you…"

Forcing a deep breath down past the rocks and needles in her chest, Lyn looked up at last into Draco's eyes. Then the next thing she knew, she had wrapped her arms around him and hid her face against his neck, letting her tears go. What was the point, anyway? Why bother pretending to be strong when she had just been proven so completely, insignificantly, perpetually weak?

Draco froze in shock at first, but recovered quickly. "Hey—hey, hey," he tried to soothe, stroking her hair gently, but he felt as if he was bad at soothing. It had been a very long time since he had been allowed to cry to his parents for comfort, and he certainly couldn't have done here at school; he would never have recovered his status among the other purebloods if he showed such weakness.

Was it weakness though, he wondered? Certainly, anyone who saw them now might look at Lyn and think her weak, which was part of the reason he had ushered her away so quickly. But leaning against him like this, he thought, was actually putting her into a position of awful power. Holding her and feeling her shake and hearing her cry was forming something new in Draco's heart. He didn't feel the urge to ridicule her for being weak, but rather to shield her from whatever was causing her harm, and that was a dangerous power to allow anyone else to have over him.

When her heaving shoulders started to still, he pulled her closer and brushed away the remnants of her tears. He wished he was taller, and instead of being so near the same height, he could pull her against his chest and press his lips to her forehead like his father sometimes did to his mother. It always seemed to calm her.

Lyn swallowed hard and pulled away, but she didn't quite look at him. "I'm sorry," she said in a voice that was only a little hoarse from tears.

"Don't be," Draco said quietly, though he was certain he had never turned down the offer of an apology before in his life.

"I shouldn't have—have freaked out on you like that," she insisted, tucking her hair away behind her ear so that she still had an excuse not to meet his eyes.

"Lyn," he whispered, and finally he caught her gaze. "I meant it when I said you can talk to me. I _want_ you to."

"Draco," she responded almost as quietly. "I don't know that you could understand."

He paused and just looked at her for a moment, his keen eyes missing nothing. The circles under Lyn's eyes were even more pronounced now than yesterday, and her eyes themselves were bloodshot now, too. Something about her bearing had changed; somewhere between the Hogwarts Express and now, she had lost a bit of the confidence that had first made him curious about her. But the most worrisome thing of all, he decided, was that she still hadn't managed a smile.

"You skipped out on me yesterday," Draco said suddenly, and he wasn't even sure why.

She blinked her confusion. "What?"

"You were supposed to come meet me for breakfast," he reminded her. "After you finished with Quirrell about your essay. You never turned up." Maybe it was the way she flinched when he mentioned Quirrell or just the natural game of connect-the-dots, but after a moment of silence, Draco asked quietly, "Is he the one who upset you?"

"I'm fine," Lyn emphasized, swallowing back the voice that wanted to scream that she wasn't. She couldn't tell him even if she wanted too; she was too afraid that, instead of being a terrified by the Dark Lord's impending return, he might actually be excited.

Sam's voice whispered in Lyn's head that it wasn't wise to trust a Malfoy.

"Listen," Draco said slowly, reaching for the last card he had to play. "What if I said I could get you in to St. Mungo's to see your friend Sam?"

Light came back into her eyes then, just a spark, but enough that trying to figure out how to explain the request to his father would be worth it.

"Really?"

Then that smile showed through for the first time since he had given her the amulet, and Draco suddenly didn't care if he had to sell his soul to St. Mungo's to get the doors open.


	18. The Spell Damage Floor

Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: I know, I know, I didn't get any writing done last weekend. But my boyfriend drove up to see me for the weekend, and when a guy makes a five-hour trip to be with you for two days, you don't ignore him to write fanfiction. XP

Not sure how many of you guys are on Pottermore, but I finally got around to reading about wandlore there, and so I decided to compare notes. Turns out I was pretty surprised by just how well the wand I picked for Lyndotia so very long ago seems to match her personality according to the information on wandcrafting. I guess the wand does choose the wizard, even unintentionally so, haha!

**Chapter Eighteen – The Spell Damage Floor**

"Fourth floor," the witch behind the Inquiries desk said in a decidedly bored voice when Lyn asked for Samantha Sloane.

"Fourth?" Lyn repeated, her brow furrowing. "Spell Damage? But Sam wasn't jinxed…"

"Look, dear," the witch said, raising a penciled-in eyebrow, "The roster says she's on the fourth floor; the fourth floor is where she is. How she got there isn't my concern."

Draco tugged at Lyn's sleeve and she followed him and his father toward the stairs, but the confused frown didn't entirely disappear from her face.

"Best not to argue with the hired help," Draco's father advised. "She's not even a Healer's apprentice; she likely wouldn't know the hex ward from an acromantula colony."

Lyn chose not to comment on this, but instead bit her tongue and said a little uncertainly, "Thank you for bringing me here, Mr. Malfoy."

"Please dear, call me Lucius," Mr. Malfoy said with a smile that seemed just a little _too_ sincere. "As soon as Draco told me you needed into the hospital, I had Dumbledore on a fire-call. He took a little convincing, as technically only your mother is normally allowed to remove you from school grounds, but I _am_ a school governor, after all."

Lucius paused on the step and looked over his shoulder at her. He seemed to mean it as a thoughtful gesture, but Lyn could see the intensity in his grey eyes as he added slowly, "Though I was slightly curious, I admit, when Draco told me _whom_ you wished to visit. I was not aware they allowed halfbreed Muggles into Hogwarts."

"Sam's not a Muggle," Lyn said a little more sharply than she meant to, then quickly reeled in her tone to an explanatory one. "Don't you find it astounding that she can work magic? How many times have a Muggle and a veela ever had a daughter who's a _witch_?"

"Astounding," Lucius agreed quietly, but as he continued up the stairs, he added, "Still, I think it best for you to keep your distance, Draco. Veela can have a very untoward effect on a boy's mind."

Choosing to ignore that, Lyn continued up the stairs. On the fourth floor landing, she paused and a crease appeared between her brows. "Did that witch say which ward—"

She didn't get to finish her sentence, because just then a ball of blue fire hit the wall two feet away. Lyn ducked, covering her head, and Lucius drew his wand, pushing the children back behind him and taking cover behind the doorframe. Lyn tried not to think about the fact that he seemed far too used to drawing his wand under fire.

"Let me GO!" a voice shrieked, and though it had a strange screech to it that sounded almost avian, Lyn recognized it at once.

"Sam," she murmured, frozen for a moment in shock. Then a gear shifted in her brain and her wand was in her hand as she shoved past Lucius and onto the landing. "Sam!" she bellowed this time, not even noticing that both Malfoys were calling out her name as well.

Lyn's eyes traced the angle from the still-smoking charred spot on the wall, and she stopped in front of an open door labeled as the Healer Dionysus Arkwright Ward. There she nearly froze again, because she saw the strangest scenario that she could ever remember being witness to.

Sam, the quiet and demure Sam, was standing with her fists clenched and covered in blue fire as she glared daggers at a fully transformed veela across the ward from her. The veela, who Lyn could only assume was Sam's mother, seemed to barely have room for her newly sprouted wings, but the cold look in her now-beady bird's eyes showed that she really didn't care. A wizard with two arms growing from where his ears should be was brandishing two wands, one pointed at each of the fire-wielding females, and a man in a rather expensive-looking suit peeked up over the side of an overturned bed with a look of terror in his eyes that meant he could only be Muggle.

"You will stay where you can be monitored!" the veela screeched—literally screeched, as it was a complete mystery how her words came out intelligibly at all, they sounded so much like a falcon's cry.

Sounding angrier than Lyn had ever imagined she could be, Sam yelled, "I don't need _monitoring_, you just don't want anyone to know you _erased_ your own _daughter_!"

The veela screeched wordlessly, and then suddenly the sound cut off. She made to throw a fireball, and Lyn started to duck, but then the fire seemed to hit an invisible wall after traveling only about a foot. Confused, Lyn looked around again, and realized the four-armed wizard was chanting under his breath, obviously constructing some kind of invisible box around the angry veela, who was now throwing handful after handful of fire in what could only be described as a tantrum.

"What in _Merlin's name_ is going on!?" Lucius demanded from right behind Lyn's ear, and Sam's attention snapped to the door. The fire on her hands instantly went out, and a blush colored her pale cheeks as if she was ashamed of losing her temper. But then she realized just who was standing at the door.

"Lyn!" Sam cried, and the next thing Lyn knew, she had been half-tackled by her silver-haired friend and hugged so tightly that it seemed a strong possibility a few ribs might be in danger of cracking. Lyn had never realized just how _strong_ Sam was.

"Hi," Lyn managed to choke out, then gasped for a breath of air when her friend released her.

"What are you doing here?" Sam asked, looking surprised but extremely pleased. "Mother told me no one was allowed!"

"Draco's dad pulled a few strings," Lyn explained, and it was a mark of Sam's urgency that she didn't even argue that her friend had involved Draco.

"I'm so glad to see you!" Sam breathed, grabbing both of Lyn's hands like lifelines. "Lyn, you have to help me! They're telling me I have to stay here like some kind of mental case, but it's not true! They just don't want me telling anyone what I've remembered until they can get someone to make me forget it again!"

"Sam, slow down," Lyn said with a crease appearing between her eyebrows. "What are you talking about? Who wants to keep you here?"

"My mum," Sam growled, casting a suspicious look at the veela who was still raging against an invisible box. "Listen, Lyn. I froze up when Professor Quirrell started yelling about a troll because it reminded me of something, something Mum had had a Healer charm me into forgetting." Sam's eyes softened, and she almost looked as if she might cry. "Lyn, I had a little sister. Her name was Cassandra and she was killed by a troll one time we went camping when I was seven. Mum wiped my memory and Dad's and every time I try to tell him, she yells over me and says how I need to stay here and be quiet because a spell addled my brain. But I _remember_, Lyn, I _know_ what I know! I remember playing dolls with her and getting mad at her for drawing on my face while I was sleeping and trying to catch her falling out of a tree and breaking my wrist—no spell could do all that!"

Lyn's mind reeled; those were exactly the same type of memories she remembered most about Reneey, and she imagined any big sister would probably say the same. Lyn couldn't even imagine if anything had ever happened to her sister and someone had tried to make her forget it—forget _Reneey_ entirely.

"No one even cast a spell on you," Lyn agreed slowly, looking at Draco for confirmation. She wasn't really sure why; he had been on the opposite side of the Great Hall at the time, but he nodded anyway.

"That explains why she's on the Spell Damage floor," Lucius remarked dryly.

"And why your parents wouldn't let anyone see you," Lyn added, squeezing Sam's hand reassuringly. "You're not crazy. Nothing happened at school that could have made you invent so many memories."

"No, I'm not crazy," Sam agreed. "My mother's just even more horrible than I ever knew."

And Sam looked so miserable that Lyn just wanted to make her feel better, but to that, there was absolutely nothing that she knew to say.


End file.
